Mmegi

Elephants outwit chilli pepper trick

In the news: Incidents of encounters between humans and elephants are on the rise again
In the news: Incidents of encounters between humans and elephants are on the rise again

The country’s elephants have found a way around a low-cost method adopted by farmers in 2015 of using chilli pepper smoke to drive the animals away. Authorities now say a mixture of methods, some expensive, is the only way to reduce human elephant conflicts, writes MBONGENI MGUNI

At the time, the chilli pepper method was hailed as an affordable method to reduce human elephant conflict.

Starting around 2015, farmers in the North West began mixing chilli pepper with elephant dung to make briquettes which they then burnt. Lit at night when elephant destruction is more prevalent, the briquettes produce a noxious smell that the animals can pick from distances and detest.

Editor's Comment
Don't let FMD outbreak drag on

Acting Agriculture Minister, Edwin Dikoloti, is right in saying opening an export-ready facility whilst Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) is still spreading would risk getting the whole country blacklisted before a single carcass leaves the door.A ban like that would break the already stressed nation. So, the postponement, painful as it is, is the right thing to do. The local economy is being squeezed from both ends. FMD has already slammed the door...

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