VOA慢速英語:肉類的大量需求導(dǎo)致了農(nóng)業(yè)生產(chǎn)上的變化

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From VOA Learning English, welcome to As It Is. I’mSteve Ember in Washington.

Today on the program, we visit a banana farm inUganda and hear about genetically-engineeredbananas. They are designed to resist disease.

But first, demand for meat, milk and eggs is growingaround the world. Karen Leggett has our report.

Demand for Meat Leads to Changes in Farming

To meet that demand, the way these products areproduced is changing. The change is from small farmsto large, industrial operations. This has alreadyhappened in the United States. But not everyone ishappy with the change. As a result, there is also a growing demand forproducts grown locally on small farms.

In Clinton, North Carolina, some old buildings are all that remain from the dayswhen James Lamb raised hogs next to his home. He saw that small farmerswere having trouble competing with companies that own large farms.

“They had better consistency, better pork quality, better genetics. So aftercollege, in ’98, I decided to try to modernize.”

He stopped raising hogs in small buildings and built two industrial-sized hogbarns. Each of them holds 1,500 hogs.

Nearly all pigs are raised this way in the United States now. The governmentsays the efficiency of large-scale production in a controlled environment hashelped reduce the price of a pork chop by nearly 20 percent since 1998.

These efficient and intensive production methods are being used around theworld. Many experts say that is a good thing as the demand for meat grows. But livestock expert Carolyn Opio points out that the land, water and feedrequired to produce it are limited.

“If we are to produce within the constraints that we are facing today, efficiency, I think, is very, is key.”

Ms. Opio is with the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization.

But the results of efficiency are not always necessarily good. The waste fromthousands of confined animals can pollute waterways and producegreenhouse gases. And some health experts are concerned about theantibiotics and other chemicals being put in the animals’ feed. Others criticizethe conditions in which the animals are kept.

So today, a growing number of people are like Kevin Summers in Amissville,Virginia, and returning to small-scale farming.

“In order to feed the world, I think this is a better way. It’s a, you know, it’s acleaner way. It’s a more humane way.”

More Americans today say they want to know where their food comes from. Some might like the way Kevin Summers raises his hogs.

“I can see the entire process unfold before my eyes and know that they had agood life and were healthy and happy.”

The hogs eat damaged apples and old pumpkins. This reduces food waste. But this kind of farming also means higher prices. Even so, Kevin Summerssays he believes it would still be possible to meet global demand this way.

“And it would just involve people making the choice to buy this kind of food andsay that, ‘I care about something other than just the cost.’”

I’m Karen Leggett.

And I’m Steve Ember with As It Is from VOA Learning English.

Scientists continue to debate the value of genetically modified organisms, orGMOs. These plants and animals have been genetically engineered. Scientists have made changes to their genetic material.

Today, we take you to Uganda and a small banana plantation, where GMObananas are being grown.

Growing Debate Over GMO Bananas in Uganda

A banana leaf affected with black sigatoka at theNational Agricultural Research Organization,Uganda, Sept. 13, 2013. (Hilary Heuler for VOA)

The trees are healthy and green. But Andrew Kiggundu does not like what hesees.

“The disease on the leaves you see right now is not the wilt, it’s a differentdisease called black sigatoka. It is just killing off the leaves and causingsignificant yield loss. This is a big problem.”

Andrew Kiggundu works with the National AgriculturalResearch Organization, also known as NARO. TheUgandan government agency is developing genetically-engineered bananas. The new plants are meant toresist black sigatoka and banana bacterial wilt, whichhas been destroying large amounts of the country’sbanana crop.

Uganda is the world’s top consumer of bananas. NARO Research Director Wilberforce Tushemereirwesays this is why it is so important to produce healthyplants.

“The disease keeps on moving around, and wiping out garden after garden, soyou will go to areas where you find they have changed from banana to annualcrops. And that has already introduced food insecurity, because they are notused to handling annual crops.”

The central African nation already permits testing of genetically modifiedorganisms or GMOs. Lawmakers are considering a bill that would permit thedevelopment and distribution of such organisms throughout the country.

But some activists say genetically-modified organisms would be dangerous tohuman health and the environment. Giregon Olupot is a soil biophysicist atMakerere University in Kampala.

“There are a range of options that risk to be wiped [out], just by thistechnology. With bananas, tissue culture has worked well to engineer healthyplants. You then take these plants to a clean garden and maintain fieldhygiene. Why are we not giving emphasis on that technology?”

Most genetically-modified seeds are patented. This means farmers mustpurchase them after each planting. Mr. Olupot says this might be possible forprofitable farms, but smaller farms depend on their own seeds. In his opinion,selling genetically-modified seeds to small farmers could trap them.

“If you are to go commercial, it has to be on a large scale. Now, the farmerswe are talking about, on average, have 0.4 hectares of land. It is simply notsuitable for our farmers.”

A public institution is developing Uganda’s genetically-modified bananas. NARO says no patent laws will restrict their use. But Mr. Olupot says thiswould probably not be true with genetically-modified crops introduced toUganda in the future.

Mr. Kiggundu says opponents of genetically-modified plants have been strongin their criticisms. He says many farmers are now afraid of GMOs.

I’m Christopher Cruise.

And that is As It Is for today. I’m Steve Ember. Thanks for joining us! For thelatest world news, be listening to VOA at the top of every hour, Universal Time.