Video: Distraught Monkey Caged, Chained, and Tormented in Coconut Industry
For Immediate Release:
3 July 2020
Contact:
Jennifer White +44 (0) 20 7837 6327, ext 222; [email protected]
Video: Distraught Monkey Caged, Chained, and Tormented in Coconut Industry
Explosive PETA Asia Investigation, Narrated by Peter Egan, Reveals Suffering Monkeys Were Forced to Collect Coconuts on Filthy Farms
London – PETA Asia’s first-ever undercover investigation into the use of monkeys in Thailand’s coconut industry, narrated by Downton Abbey star Peter Egan, reveals that monkeys paced and circled endlessly on chains, were confined to cramped cages with no shelter from the rain, and were forced to climb trees and pick coconuts for coconut milk sold by major brands like Chaokoh and Aroy-D. Following the investigation, more than 15,000 stores will no longer purchase products from these brands, and the majority will no longer buy any coconut products sourced from monkey labour in Thailand.
In the UK, Morrisons has suspended its supply of Chaokoh pending investigation and Ocado, Waitrose, and Co-op have made the commitment to never knowingly selling any products sourced from monkey labour. Walgreens Boots Alliance (operator of Boots) has committed to not stocking Aroy-D and Chaokoh and not knowingly selling any own-brand coconut food and drink products of Thai origin in its stores in Thailand, the UK, and the US. Now, PETA is urging major retailers Tesco, Asda, and Sainsbury’s to do the same. International companies including Bed Bath & Beyond’s Cost Plus World Market have stopped buying coconut products from Chaokoh. Ahold Delhaize and its brands, including Giant Food, Food Lion, Stop & Shop, and Hannaford in the US as well as Albert Heijn in the Netherlands, have also pledged to cease knowingly stocking and selling any products from suppliers that use monkey labour.
Last year, PETA Asia’s investigators visited eight farms where monkeys are forced to pick coconuts for export around the world – as well as four “monkey schools” and a coconut-picking competition. The animals at these facilities – many of whom are illegally captured as babies – displayed stereotypic behaviour indicative of extreme stress. Monkeys were chained to old tyres or confined to cages that were barely large enough for them to turn around in. One monkey in a cage on a lorry bed was seen frantically shaking the cage bars in a futile attempt to escape, and a screaming monkey on a rope desperately tried to run away from a handler. An investigator learned that if monkeys try to defend themselves, their canine teeth may be pulled out.
“These curious, highly intelligent animals are denied psychological stimulation, companionship, freedom, and everything else that would make their lives worth living, all so that they can be used to gather coconuts,” says PETA Director Elisa Allen. “PETA is calling on decent people never to support the use of monkey labour by shunning coconut products from Thailand.”
PETA and its international affiliates oppose speciesism, a human-supremacist worldview. For more information, please visit PETA.org.uk.
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