VOA慢速英語:US Finds Unapproved Form of Wheat in Oregon

From VOA Learning English, this is the Agriculture Report.

這里是美國之音慢速英語農(nóng)業(yè)報道節(jié)目。

Some countries have suspended imports of wheat from the United States. The suspensions were announced after an unapproved form of wheat was found in the American state of Oregon. The crop was made through processes of genetic engineering.

一些國家已經(jīng)暫停從美國進(jìn)口小麥。宣布暫緩進(jìn)口是在美國俄勒岡州發(fā)現(xiàn)一種未經(jīng)批準(zhǔn)種植的小麥之后，這種作物是通過基因工程制成的。

An Oregon farmer recently discovered wheat in his field that survived the popular weed killer Roundup. Roundup is designed to destroy unwanted plants. It is a product of the seed and chemical company Monsanto.

一位俄勒岡州農(nóng)民最近在他的地里發(fā)現(xiàn)一些未被常用除草劑農(nóng)達(dá)(Roundup)除掉的小麥。農(nóng)達(dá)被用于除掉有害植物。它是來自種子和化學(xué)品公司孟山都公司的一款產(chǎn)品。

The company has created genetically engineered corn, cotton, soybean and canola crops that resist Roundup. Monsanto had field-tested Roundup-resistant wheat. But it never sought government approval of the wheat and the seed were never sold.

該公司研制了能夠抵抗農(nóng)達(dá)的轉(zhuǎn)基因玉米、棉花、大豆和油菜作物。孟山都公司曾經(jīng)實地測試抗農(nóng)達(dá)的小麥。但它從未尋求政府批準(zhǔn)種植這種小麥，種子也未上市銷售。

Michael Firko is with the United States Department of Agriculture, he says the wheat had passed safety inspections.

邁克爾·菲可(Michael Firko)就職于美國農(nóng)業(yè)部，他表示這種小麥通過了安全審查。

"Although there are no wheat varieties that are approved for unrestricted planting, we have no safety concerns related to planting of this transgenic wheat at this time."

他說，“雖然沒有小麥品種被批準(zhǔn)無限制種植，但現(xiàn)階段也不存在涉及種植這種轉(zhuǎn)基因小麥的安全問題。”

Monsanto ended its wheat project mainly because buyers in Europe and Asia were concerned about the safety of genetically engineered crops. The discovery of unapproved wheat in Oregon led Japan and South Korea to suspend some imports, at least temporarily.

孟山都公司終止了它的小麥項目，主要是因為歐洲和亞洲的買家擔(dān)心轉(zhuǎn)基因作物的安全性。在俄勒岡州發(fā)現(xiàn)未經(jīng)批準(zhǔn)種植的小麥導(dǎo)致了日本和韓國暫停進(jìn)口，至少暫時會如此。

Mark Welch is an agricultural economist at Texas A&M University. He says American Farmers do not want to produce genetically engineered wheat because there is no demand for it. he also says the incident could affect America's standing in a competitive world marketplace.

馬克·韋爾奇(Mark Welch)是德克薩斯農(nóng)工大學(xué)的一名農(nóng)業(yè)經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)家。他說，美國農(nóng)民無意生產(chǎn)轉(zhuǎn)基因小麥，因為沒有需求。他還表示，這一事件可能會影響美國在競爭激勵的全球市場中的地位。

The United States is the world's largest wheat exporter. Mark Welch says American agriculture already has difficulty competing against other countries because production costs are higher in the United States.

美國是全球最大的小麥出口國。韋爾奇表示，因為美國生產(chǎn)成本太高，美國農(nóng)業(yè)在和其它國家的競爭中已經(jīng)面臨困難。

"If we're going to maintain a place in world markets, we have to primarily on two fronts: one on quality, and the other on reliability. And this raises a red flag, of course, when something like this happens."

他說，“如果我們要維持美國在全球市場中的地位，我們必須主要抓住兩點：一是質(zhì)量，二是可靠性。當(dāng)然現(xiàn)在發(fā)生這樣的事情，紅燈就會亮起。”

Right now it is not clear how the incidents happened. American officials are working to identify where the genetically engineered wheat came from. There is no evidence yet that it has entered the food supply, However, the Agriculture Department is working to make tests available to buyers.

目前尚不清楚這一事件是如何發(fā)生的。美國官員正在努力查明這種轉(zhuǎn)基因小麥源自何處。尚未有證據(jù)表明它已經(jīng)進(jìn)入食品供應(yīng)。然而，農(nóng)業(yè)部正致力于為賣家提供檢測辦法。

Prices of wheat on world markets have changed little since the discovery of the unapproved wheat. But this could change after the investigation is completed.

從發(fā)現(xiàn)這種未經(jīng)批準(zhǔn)種植的小麥以來，全球市場上的小麥價格變化不大。但這點可能會在調(diào)查完成后改變。