Thailand smashes coconut-profiteering web led by Chinese firms

Thai police have broken up a web of Chinese companies allegedly using Thai fronts to control the kingdom’s coconut supply, squeezing prices to record lows of 2 baht (6 US cents) per fruit and allowing wide profit margins on sales into China. The probe, launched across western agricultural provinces where the nam hom coconut farms are based, reflects broader concerns about the exploitation of Thai fruit farmers by foreign businessmen who set prices and dictate market terms. Raids on eight...

By Aidan Jones