COCONUT MONKEYS
Monkeys have traditionally been used to harvest coconuts in some parts of Southeast Asia, particularly where trees are too tall for people to reach easily. The practice involves trained macaques climbing coconut palms and twisting or pulling coconuts from the trees. In Thailand, the tradition has continued in some areas even as growers increasingly adopted human workers and mechanical or pole-based harvesting methods. The practice became controversial because of concerns about how the animals were trained, housed and treated.[Source: Siraphob Thanthong-Knight and Natnicha Chuwiruch, Bloomberg, July 9, 2020; Sophia Ankel, The Independent, November 1, 2020; Tassanee Vejpongsa, Associated Press, July 7, 2020]
The use of monkeys was partly related to the height of coconut trees. Some coconuts grown for water came from dwarf trees that could be harvested by people using long bamboo sticks or pole pruners, while coconut palms grown for milk could exceed 15 meters and were more difficult to reach. Somjai Saekow of a monkey-training school in southern Thailand said climbing tall trees was dangerous for humans and could result in serious injury or death. She nevertheless acknowledged that finding alternatives would be preferable and said, "It would be great if we can find an alternative way to collect coconuts."
In some parts of Malaysia, pig-tailed macaques (a relatively russet, rain forest monkey native to Southeast Asia) have been trained to climb trees and pick coconuts for human masters. Known locally as beroks, they can harvest 300 or 400 coconuts in a morning before they tire in the hot sun. They are connected to their human handlers by thin ropes or chains. The best monkeys can harvest 800 coconuts a day and clear a whole grove in a day by leaping 30 feet from tree to tree and tossing down coconuts like cluster bombs. [Source: Randall Peffer, Smithsonian magazine]
Humans are sometimes faster than beroks on a single tree but monkeys have more endurance, they can sometimes leap from tree to tree, and they aren't bothered as much by stinging ants, scorpions and poisonous snakes that often inhabit the top of coconut palms. One handler told Smithsonian, "the big males are best for picking from tall trees, where the work is hard. But the males can be difficult to manage; they are strong and have large canines. Young beroks are easier to work with but are not always as productive."
See Separate Article: COCONUTS: USES, CULTIVATION AND PRODUCTS factsanddetails.com
Coconut Monkeys at Work
Monkeys are sometimes employed in the coconut industry to climb up trees and bring down coconuts. The monkeys and their handlers are contracted out by planation owners. They are taught not to bring down any old coconut but only the young ones with tender meat. They are fickle though and won't work when they are tired.
Monkeys that respond to voice commands are sometimes used to pick coconuts. Sometimes a owner will get monkeys to work in pairs or teams to bring down hard to reach nuts. Describing a berok named Hitam at work on 80-foot-high trees, Randall Peffer, wrote in Smithsonian magazine, "Led to the first tree, the berok rapidly shins up. Tahar [the handler] lets out coils of leash until the monkey is swaying among the fronds. Almost immediately the tree begins to shake as Hitam struggles to break a coconut from its tough stem. Rustling noises disturb the silence and Tahar moves quickly to dodge the coconuts that suddenly begin to thump on the soft ground around him." After five or six coconuts are plucked. Tahar tugs on the leash for Hitam to climb down and try the next tree some 25 to 30 feet away. The work is slow; Hitam lacks the speed and strength of larger, more experienced berok."
The Malay writer Fatima Busu, once explained, "Beroks are so like us. They can be loving and cooperative but also mean spirited, selfish and lustful. Also very independent. We can love this animal. We can hate it, all at the same time."
Different coconut-producing regions have developed different harvesting methods. According to PETA, producers in Brazil, Colombia and Hawaii used humans, ropes, ladders or tractor-mounted hydraulic elevators rather than monkeys. In Thailand, shorter coconut varieties had also increasingly been cultivated to make harvesting easier. Naris Khamnurak, a lawmaker from the country's main coconut-growing region, described monkey harvesting as an old tradition that might eventually need to change.
Coconut Monkeys, Their Handlers and Training
At home the beroks are kept tethered to poles and are transported from place to pace on platforms on the back of bicycles. Or motorbikes. If a berok falls and breaks a leg it is given a splint, hand feed, bathed by its handler until it recovers. Monkey have been known to protect their handlers from wild dogs and raise a call of alarm when a poisonous snake is near.
One handler told Smithsonian, "I give my monkeys affection every day. I sit with them, and we groom one another. We share fruit or walk to the river together to bathe." Sometimes the monkeys are offspring of berok; sometimes they are caught on the forest with nets or traps. Often though, nursing mothers are shot are their babies ate taken.
Training the beroks involves patience, persistence, punishment and rewards, mimicry and persuading the monkey that picking coconuts is somehow to his or her advantage. A bond between the trainer and monkey and an understanding of macaque body language and social interaction are necessary.
Describing the training of berok by a trainer name Hajee, Peffer wrote: "First the man clips the monkey's wire collar to a leash, holds him close and dangles before him a ripe coconut on a stem and shows the berok how twisting the coconut will make it fall. Next the trainer places the monkey's hand on the coconut, and the monkey imitates what he has just seen. The coconut drops. At the end of the training session, Jajee cuts open the fruit and shares it with the trainee."
“On day two the coconut is tied to a low tree. The exercises of the day before are repeated, but this time the monkey has to climb a tree. Successful plucking is rewarded with another coconut feast. On the third day the monkey repeats this lesson and then follows his trainer to a tall palm." Later the monkeys are taught to respond to commands, and pick ripe coconuts using a similar reward system. After a training period of around 20 days, the berok is ready to pick coconuts for five or six hours a day.
Use of Monkeys in the Coconut Trade in Thailand
Thailand was one of the world's major coconut producers, producing about 1.3 million tons of coconuts annually and exporting fresh and dried coconuts as well as coconut milk and oil. In 2019, the country exported about 12.3 billion baht ($395 million) worth of coconut milk, including 2.2 billion baht ($71 million) to the European Union and Britain. Some Thai plantations used macaques to harvest coconuts, although government officials and industry representatives said the practice was relatively uncommon. The issue nevertheless became an international trade controversy in 2020. [Source: Siraphob Thanthong-Knight and Natnicha Chuwiruch, Bloomberg, July 9, 2020; Sophia Ankel, The Independent, November 1, 2020; Tassanee Vejpongsa, Associated Press, July 7, 2020]
The controversy intensified after PETA conducted an undercover investigation at eight Thai farms and several monkey-training facilities. PETA alleged that monkeys were chained, confined in cramped cages and forced to climb trees to collect coconuts. The organization said some monkeys were required to gather as many as 1,000 coconuts a day and described them as being treated like "coconut-picking machines." These allegations prompted international criticism and threatened boycotts of Thai coconut products.
Thai authorities and industry representatives disputed the suggestion that monkey labor was widespread throughout the industry. Jurin said that most farmers used human workers with long-handled cutting tools and that monkeys were mainly associated with traditional harvesting and tourism. Somjai Saekow, who trained coconut-collecting monkeys in Surat Thani, said most owners cared for their animals and treated them like pets, although she acknowledged that there were exceptions. "We have to point out those who commit the wrongs and correct them," she said.
Some major Thai coconut producers also denied using monkey labor. Theppadungporn Coconut Co., which produced Chaokoh coconut milk, said it purchased coconuts from plantations that used human harvesters. Thai Agri Foods, producer of Aroy-D coconut milk, likewise said its products did not come from plantations using monkeys. The competing claims made it difficult for consumers and retailers to determine which Thai coconut products were connected to monkey harvesting.
The scale of monkey harvesting in Thailand was disputed. Commerce Minister Jurin Laksanawisit said monkey harvesting was not a major part of the country's coconut industry and argued that using monkeys on an industrial scale was not profitable. Coconut Farmers Association president Nukul Luk-In similarly said most farmers hired people using cutters attached to long poles, with macaques used only occasionally to reach particularly high trees. Monkey trainer Somjai Saekow acknowledged that demand for trained monkeys had declined but said, "I still think monkeys are useful tools in picking coconuts."
Allegations of Abuse of Monkeys in the Coconut Trade
PETA alleged that its undercover investigation documented serious mistreatment of monkeys used in Thailand's coconut industry. According to the organization, monkeys were chained, kept in cages barely larger than their bodies and forced to climb coconut trees repeatedly. The investigation also alleged that some animals were chained to old tires and made to perform "circus-style shows for tourists." PETA reported finding what it described as cruelty at farms, monkey-training facilities and coconut-picking contests involving monkey labor. [Source: Siraphob Thanthong-Knight and Natnicha Chuwiruch, Bloomberg, July 9, 2020; Sophia Ankel, The Independent, November 1, 2020; Tassanee Vejpongsa, Associated Press, July 7, 2020]
The organization claimed that some monkeys were forced to collect around 1,000 coconuts a day. It also reported severe signs of distress, including one monkey that allegedly chewed off one of its own limbs. PETA President Ingrid Newkirk said consumers did not want monkeys "chained up and treated like coconut-picking machines." The allegations generated international publicity and led several retailers to reconsider whether they would stock Thai coconut products.
Thai officials rejected the characterization of the industry as systematically abusive. Jurin said macaques were not generally harmed and argued that monkey harvesting represented only a small part of the country's coconut production. Somjai Saekow similarly said that most monkey owners treated their animals well because properly cared-for monkeys were more useful workers. She nevertheless acknowledged that some people could mistreat the animals and said such cases should be identified and corrected.
The controversy therefore centered on both the treatment of individual monkeys and the wider question of whether animals should be used for commercial coconut harvesting at all. PETA called for Thailand to end what it described as the "enslavement of monkeys," while Thai officials emphasized the limited scale of the practice and the increasing availability of human and mechanical alternatives. The dispute also raised questions about whether claims that coconuts were harvested without monkeys could be independently verified. Thailand's government responded by proposing greater traceability of coconut products.
Ban on Coconut Products Made Using Monkeys
The allegations quickly produced commercial consequences outside Thailand. Several British supermarkets reportedly said they would stop selling certain Thai coconut products, while retailers in the United States and Australia began questioning suppliers about the use of monkey labor. Carrie Symonds, the fiancée of British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, publicly urged stores to boycott products made using monkeys. PETA said growing consumer pressure was forcing retailers to reconsider their sourcing policies. [Source: Siraphob Thanthong-Knight and Natnicha Chuwiruch, Bloomberg, July 9, 2020; Sophia Ankel, The Independent, November 1, 2020; Tassanee Vejpongsa, Associated Press, July 7, 2020]
In July 2020, Thailand's government announced measures intended to allow retailers and consumers to trace coconuts back to their source. Packages were to carry codes showing where the coconuts originated and whether they came from plantations that did not use monkeys. The commerce ministry, animal-welfare authorities and coconut industry representatives agreed to develop the traceability system. The government presented the measure as a way to distinguish legitimate human-harvested products from coconuts associated with monkey labor.
The campaign also affected major retailers in the United States. In November 2020, Costco stopped stocking coconut milk from Theppadungporn Coconut Co., following PETA's allegations concerning monkey labor. Other retailers, including Walgreens, Food Lion, Giant Food and Stop & Shop, were also reported to have stopped stocking products from suppliers accused of using monkeys. Costco said it did not support the use of monkeys and required harvesting to be carried out by human labor.
The Thai suppliers denied the allegations and maintained that their products were not produced using monkey labor. Theppadungporn Coconut Co. said, "We do not engage the use of monkey labor in our coconut plantations." Costco indicated that it would continue monitoring the supplier's harvesting policies and could resume purchasing once it was satisfied that the required standards were being followed. The controversy thus shifted from a dispute over animal treatment to a broader debate over supply-chain transparency, consumer boycotts and whether Thailand's coconut industry should eliminate monkey harvesting altogether.
Image Sources: Wikimedia Commons
Text Sources: Tourist Authority of Thailand, Thailand Foreign Office, The Government Public Relations Department, CIA World Factbook,, National Geographic, Smithsonian magazine, New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Library of Congress, “Encyclopedia of World Cultures Volume 5: East/Southeast Asia:” edited by Paul Hockings, 1993; Encyclopedia.com, Live Science, “Culture Shock! Thailand” by Robert Cooper, Marshall Cavendish International, 2008; “Thai Customs and Etiquette” by Marlene Zefferys, Marshall Cavendish, 2009The Conversation, The Guardian, BBC, CNN, Reuters, Associated Press, AFP, Lonely Planet Guides, Google AI, Wikipedia, and various websites, books and other publications.
Last updated September 2026