One suggestion is to remove the center from a loaf of bread and hide a snake inside -- a live one if possible. Baboons have a fear of snakes. They also have good memories. Rene Czudek at the FAO says a baboon frightened by a snake sandwich will probably not come back.

Another animal with a good memory -- the elephant -- often raids field crops, especially maize and cassava. Mr. Czudek says the loss of a maize crop can mean the loss of a family's food supply for a year.

Did you know elephants hate chili pepper?

Farmers can grind pepper, mix it with elephant waste and form bricks. The idea is to burn these bricks around the edges of fields to keep elephants away. Farmers can also grow fields of chili peppers -- and sell the surplus.

Another way to control elephants is with a plastic gun called the Mhiripiri Bomber. It fires balls that burst and release a chili solution when they hit the elephant's skin.

You might also be able to stop an elephant or a hippopotamus by shining lights in their eyes.

The FAO toolkit is supposed to be available online soon. People will be able to comment on the suggestions and offer their own.

And that’s the VOA Special English Agriculture Report, written by Jerilyn Watson. I’m Bob Doughty.