New problem for elephants - 9th April 2021

This is Tolstoy the elephant. He lives in Kenya, Africa.

Elephants have difficult lives. Sometimes, people kill them. Other times, they can't find water.

Now, Tolstoy has a new problem: avocados. Avocados are healthy fruit. They are very popular in rich countries.

KiliAvo Fresh is an avocado company. It bought some land in Kenya for a big avocado farm. But elephants have their babies on this land.

Daniel Ole Sambu works for an animal charity. He is worried about the elephants. Where will they have their babies now?

Daniel: "There are two farms there, and both of them are exactly in the middle of a wildlife dispersal area. Some of this, we have recorded some of this area has been used by elephant as maternity. You know, they come out of the park, outside the park, give birth there, and then they go back when they, they the calf, calf are good, enough to walk. So when we, we do a large farm there, then it means we are going to lose that space. The elephant has to find another space."

KiliAvo makes a lot of money from avocados. Many people say this is good for Kenya. But other people think it's bad for the elephants.

Samuel Kaanki thinks the government needs to stop KiliAvo.

Samuel: "If we lose this land, if, if KiliAvo will be allowed to continue, we will lose others. We have so many others people who are waiting. So it is dangerous. If we lose this, we will lose so many."

Now, the government and KiliAvo are talking about the situation. But KiliAvo is still growing avocados.