VOA慢速英語:Good News, Bad News on Food Prices and Production

This is the VOA Special English Agriculture Report.

這里是美國之音慢速英語農(nóng)業(yè)報道。

Food prices have risen sharply over the past few years. The good news is that the rate of increase has slowed. The bad news is that prices will not go down anytime soon.

在過去幾年中，糧食價格急劇上漲。好消息是，上漲速度已經(jīng)放緩。壞消息是，價格短期內(nèi)不會下降。

Also, the rate of global agricultural production is slowing. Yet it needs to increase sixty percent over the next forty years to feed a growing world population.

此外，全球農(nóng)業(yè)生產(chǎn)增長率開始放緩。然而未來40年，農(nóng)業(yè)生產(chǎn)增長率需要提高60%，以養(yǎng)活不斷增加的世界人口。

These are among the findings from the OECD-FAO Agricultural Outlook 2012-2021. The OECD is the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. The FAO is the Food and Agriculture Organization, a United Nations agency.

這些都是經(jīng)合組織-糧農(nóng)組織《2012-2021農(nóng)業(yè)展望報告》的研究結(jié)果。經(jīng)合組織是指經(jīng)濟合作與發(fā)展組織，糧農(nóng)組織是指聯(lián)合國機構(gòu)糧食和農(nóng)業(yè)組織。

FAO Director-General Jose Graziano da Silva spoke at a news conference in Rome last week when the report was released. Mr. Da Silva said that, not surprisingly, the world's poorest people will feel the greatest effects of higher prices.

糧農(nóng)組織總干事何塞·格拉齊亞諾·達席爾瓦(Jose Graziano da Silva)上周在羅馬公布這份農(nóng)業(yè)展望報告的新聞發(fā)布會上做了發(fā)言。達席爾瓦先生表示，不出意外，全球最貧困人口將感受到糧食價格上漲的巨大影響。

JOSE GRAZIANO DA SILVA: "For the millions and millions of people living in extreme poverty, the implications of high food prices are clear -- they might have to change their diets, usually to ones with poorer nutrition quality."

達席爾瓦：“對數(shù)以百萬計極端貧困的人民來說，高糧價的影響顯而易見，他們可能不得不改吃營養(yǎng)品質(zhì)更差的食物。”

In middle-income countries, people are gaining weight as they eat fewer fruits and vegetables and more of the cheaper but less nutritious foods.

在中等收入國家，人們因為吃更少的蔬菜水果，吃更多的廉價但低營養(yǎng)的食物而體重增加。

The report also shows that farmers in poorer countries will be leading efforts to feed an expected nine billion people by twenty-fifty. The outlook predicts that farmers in Latin America, the Caribbean and sub-Saharan Africa will drive agricultural production in the future. Angel Gurria is chief of the OECD.

該報告還顯示，到2050年，貧窮國家的農(nóng)民將成為養(yǎng)活預(yù)期的90億人口的主要力量。這份展望報告還預(yù)測，拉丁美洲、加勒比地區(qū)和撒哈拉以南地區(qū)的農(nóng)民將推動未來的農(nóng)業(yè)生產(chǎn)。安赫爾·古里亞(Angel Gurria)是經(jīng)合組織負責人。

ANGEL GURRIA: "We can feed nine billion people by twenty-fifty in this planet without stretching things too far. But we have to organize ourselves better."

古里亞：“到2050年，我們可以在不開發(fā)過度的情況下養(yǎng)活這個星球上的90億人口。但我們必須更好地組織起來。”

But there are plenty of challenges. One-fourth of all agricultural land is damaged. Many countries face water shortages. And experts believe climate change is driving increasingly unusual weather patterns.

但目前有很多挑戰(zhàn)。全球1/4的農(nóng)業(yè)用地被破壞。許多國家面臨水資源短缺。而專家認為，氣候變化正推動愈發(fā)異常的天氣模式。

The report says farmers need to use more environmentally sustainable growing methods. At the same time, it says governments should end economically harmful supports and invest more in agricultural production. Mr. Gurria says rich and poor nations need to treat agriculture more like a business.

該報告表示，農(nóng)民必須采用更加環(huán)保的可持續(xù)增長模式。同時，政府應(yīng)當結(jié)束跟經(jīng)濟相關(guān)的有害支持，加大對農(nóng)業(yè)生產(chǎn)的投資。古里亞先生表示，富有和貧窮國家必須將農(nóng)業(yè)當作一門生意。

ANGEL GURRIA: "In many cases, agriculture is related in people's minds to the poorest. It's related to aid. It's related to very depressed living conditions, etcetera. We got to shake that image away."

古里亞：“許多情況下，農(nóng)業(yè)在人們的心目中和最貧窮掛鉤，和援助掛鉤，和極端蕭條的生活條件等等掛鉤。我們已經(jīng)開始甩掉這一印象。”

It also means reducing waste. The FAO and the OECD estimate that about one-third of world food production is lost -- either because of poor growing and harvesting methods or because people are throwing away good food.

此外還必須減少浪費。糧農(nóng)組織和經(jīng)合組織預(yù)計，世界糧食產(chǎn)量有將近1/3流失。原因要么是因為低劣的種植和收割方法，要么是因為人們浪費食物。