Thailand: Have monkeys been exploited in coconut plantations?

In an investigation published Thursday, January 7, the animal rights organization PETA finds that monkeys are exploited in coconut plantations.

Ayear ago, PETA denounced the forced labor of monkeys in Thailand, on coconut plantations . The revelations had also prompted traders around the world to sever their links with Thai brands of coconut milk. In a new survey published Thursday, January 7, the organization finds that things have not changed. Worse, the exploitation of these animals continues, under the guise of false promises and statements .

For this work, investigators from PETA Asia visited fourteen coconut farms . According to their observations, half of them still resorted to monkeys to climb trees and pick fruit. For others, “it is almost impossible to know if they are really not using monkeys,” the association writes , because “farmers can hire the services of outsiders to bring in monkeys just at harvest time. “.

According to Thai law , owners of monkeys must declare their detention . However, in a video, the organization explains, through interviews with workers, how the plantations buy monkeys without declaring them or hide them until the end of the controls.