Tell Costa Coffee to stop exploiting monkeys!

We, the undersigned, ask Costa Coffee and the Whitbread Group to pull its "Monkeys and Typewriters" advertising campaign and make a public pledge not to use wild animals as "actors" in any future productions.  Until this happens, we will boycott Costa Coffee.

Primates are intelligent, complex animals, deserving of dignity and respect. 

To be used as perfomers, primates are often permanently removed from their mothers long before weaning age - which is not only acutely distressing to both mother and infant, but which is known to hinder normal brain development, and can result in psychological and physiological abnormalities and lasting behavioural difficulties. 

Performing primates can be subject to hours confined in traveling crates en route to and from the brightly lit and potentially frightening studio.  A number of scientific papers indicate that transport is highly stressful to primates and should be avoided wherever possible.

Nearly fifty percent of primate species are threatened with extinction in the wild.  The use of primates as entertainers in film and television exacerbates public misconceptions about their being pliable, fun and pet-like, and often leads to an increased demand for pet monkeys, which negatively affects both the welfare of individual monkeys and conservation efforts in primate habitat areas.  

Respected professional societies such as the International Primatological Society oppose the use of primate "actors" in the media.

For all of the above reasons, it should be clear that Costa's use of sixteen primate "actors" in the new advertising campaign is irresponsible and damaging.  To pull the advertisement, and pledge not to make the same mistake in the future would demonstrate genuine concern and respect for wildlife conservation and animal welfare.  To ignore public outcry about the issue would also send a clear message to concerned consumers, albeit not one that would work well in Costa's favour.