Thailand speeds up issuance of GAP certificates to coconut growers
Thailand’s Department of Agriculture (DOA) has announced that it will speed up surveys and issuance of monkey-free certificates to coconut growers who have already earned Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) logo.
Thailand to speed up issuance of money-free certificates to coconut growers(Photo: nationthailand.com)
Bangkok (VNA) ౠ– Thailand’s Departmentof Agriculture (DOA) has announced that it will speed up surveys and issuanceof monkey-free certificates to coconut growers who have already earned GoodAgricultural Practices (GAP) logo.
Director-general Raphiphat Chantharasriwong said thePlant Standard and Certification Division and the legal affairs division of thedepartment had drafted criteria for coconut growers and exporters to receivethe “GAP Monkey-Free Plus” logo, adding the criteria will be published in the Royal Gazettesoon. The GAP Monkey-Free Plus will be an enhanced versionof the Monkey-Free Plus developed last year in response to campaigns by Peoplefor the Ethical Treatment of Animals (Peta). Peta accused Thai farmers of abusing monkeys by usingthem to pick coconuts and Peta called on the United Nations and the EuropeanUnion to boycott coconut products from Thailand. Raphiphat said exporters will receive the GAPMonkey-Free Plus certificates for their coconut products only if they usedcoconuts from plantations that had received the GAP logo, and after thedepartment had verified that the farmers had not used monkeys to pluckcoconuts. He added that every step of the product processingwould be recorded to verify back in every step to assure buyers that monkeyswere not used to pick the coconuts. Raphiphat said department officials would givepriority to their survey and verify that there was no use of monkey labour bycoconut growers, who had received the GAP certificates, and they would beawarded with GAP Money-Free Plus certificates. Then, the department would check and verify thecoconut plantations of exporters, who had not received the GAP, so that theycould be awarded the normal Monkey-Free Plus certificate. Raphiphat added that the new coconut saplingswould yield trees with shorter trunks so farmers would not have to use monkeysto pick the coconuts. The department had alsobeen assigned by the government to produce saplings of short-trunk coconuttrees to distribute to farmers, he added./.
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Thailand to speed up issuance of money-free certificates to coconut growers(Photo: nationthailand.com) 
