Aussies urged to boycott popular coconut milk products over enslaved monkey allegations

Image: PETA Asia

Australians are being urged to boycott several coconut products amid allegations that enslaved monkeys are used to pick coconuts.

A People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) investigation alleges farms that supply Thai companies Chaokoh and PCC — which sell coconut milk, cream and water in Australia — use monkey labour.

In the US, Target and Costco have dropped Chaokoh over the allegations.

PETA spokesperson, Emily Rice, says the practice is “really cruel”.

“They’re very rarely bred into the industry, they’re usually captured in the wild as babies, and then they’re put into cages,” she told Neil Mitchell.

“They can barely turnaround.

“Video footage shows them chewing their own limbs. They can even sometimes have their teeth removed to stop them from defending themselves.”

PETA is urging Australians to avoid coconut products from Thailand, where monkey labour is widespread.

“If consumers can steer away from Thai products, and particularly Chaokoh and PCC labelled products that are sold in Australia, then that will go a long way to sending the message that things need to change.”

In a Twitter post from July last year, Chaokoh denied the allegations, saying it does not support the use of monkey labour and its suppliers have signed memorandums of understanding that no monkey labour be used at their farms.

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