PETA Protests Whole Foods East Pasadena Over Sale of Thai Coconut Milk

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) activists protested outside a Whole Foods Market at 3751 E. Foothill Blvd. in East Pasadena on Sunday afternoon, urging the store to stop selling coconut milk from Thailand.

The group says monkeys are forced to spend long hours climbing trees and picking coconuts used to produce the product. The monkeys are denied the freedom to move around, socialize with others, or do anything else that’s natural and important to them.

“Whole Foods knows full well of the rampant abuse in the Thai coconut industry,” said Amber Canavan, a manager of campaigns with PETA. “These monkeys are illegally snatched from their natural habitats and subjected to a lifetime of activity and suffering. They’re chained, whipped, and forced to spend long hours picking these heavy coconuts.”

PETA has been investigating the Thai coconut industry for several years and reports it has found that the use of monkey labor is widespread. In 2022, PETA Asia released a video investigation that showed monkeys being chained to trees, beaten, and shocked with electric batons in order to force them to pick coconuts.

It was not immediately known if Whole Foods has responded to PETA’s requests to stop selling coconut milk from Thailand. Other retailers such as Walmart, Target, and Costco have reportedly already stopped selling coconut milk from certain Thai suppliers due to allegations of forced monkey labor.

“Whole Foods needs to follow suit [of other grocery store chains] and stop selling brands that are connected to monkey labor,” Canavan said. “Customers specifically go to Whole Foods expecting the brand to have higher standards.”

PETA is urging Whole Foods customers to contact the company and demand that it stop selling coconut milk from Thailand.