美国国家公共电台 NPR--Many products by the largest food firms are considered unhealthy, research shows

Many products by the largest food firms are considered unhealthy, research shows

Transcript¹

Two new reports paint a dismal² picture of nutrition in the U.S. One finds about 70% of products sold by the largest food companies are unhealthy. Investor³ groups are pushing for change.

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

Two new reports paint a dismal picture of nutrition in the U.S. One says about 70% of products sold by the largest food companies, including Kraft, Heinz and Kellogg, are considered unhealthy. And that's the food that stocks a lot of U.S. grocery shelves. And new Gallup data shows just how much Americans' diets are lacking. It's not a new problem. But as NPR's Allison Aubrey reports, what is new is the momentum⁴ for change.

ALLISON AUBREY, BYLINE⁵: When you walk into a grocery store this time of year, are there certain displays that are hard to miss?

ANNA HERFORTH: Of course - all the Halloween candy.

AUBREY: That's Anna Herforth of the T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Her research with Gallup provides a new snapshot of Americans' eating habits. It shows just how many or how few consume the variety of different recommended food groups.

HERFORTH: What we find is it's about 28% of Americans are eating any amount of all of the food groups recommended in the U.S. dietary guidelines.

AUBREY: Even fewer eat the recommended amounts of things like fruits, vegetables and whole grains. For decades now, as diet-related diseases, including obesity⁶ and diabetes⁷, have increased, Americans have been told to eat better. The problem is there's a big mismatch between the foods we're told we should eat and the foods that are most abundant and affordable⁸ on store shelves.

HERFORTH: There's been a long tradition of, you know, putting personal responsibility on individuals to choose a healthy diet. And that's really difficult when you're sort of fighting against the food environment.

AUBREY: It's not just Halloween candy. Researchers at the Access to Nutrition Initiative analyzed⁹ about 11,000 products from leading food companies, including Kellogg, General Mills, Unilever, Kraft Heinz and Nestle. They found about 70% failed to meet a healthy threshold.

The group's executive director, Greg Garrett, says many companies have pledged to make changes, but so far, he sees little progress.

GREG GARRETT: This is disappointing. This is a disappointing finding after four years of engaging with these food companies that the overall product portfolios¹⁰ haven't changed, that they're not healthier than they were.

AUBREY: Many of the companies included in the new report push back. Kraft Heinz, for instance, points to a 40% reduction in sugar in its Capri Sun drinks, which are popular with kids. But critics say incremental¹¹ changes are not enough, not at a time when diet-related diseases are a top cause of death. So to step up the pressure, Greg Garrett and his team want to leverage¹² investors¹³' power to nudge companies to sell healthier foods.

GARRETT: We've been working to build a coalition¹⁴ of investors - these are institutional investors - who believe strongly that we need to see change at the highest level.

AUBREY: The pandemic shined a spotlight¹⁵ on the impact of diet-related disease. People with diabetes and heart disease were more likely to be hospitalized or die from COVID. Now with increased awareness¹⁶, Garrett says more investors are interested and putting their money into companies that strive to do better.

GARRETT: We're going to work with our 80 or so investor signatories over the coming years, we hope, to see the chief executives of these companies in the boardrooms enact¹⁷ change.

AUBREY: It is easier said than done. But one investor, Lauren Compere¹⁸, managing director with an impact investing firm called Boston Common Asset Management, says investors can push for a range of strategies - for instance, linking executives' compensation to the launch and sales of healthy products or nudging companies to prioritize marketing¹⁹ of healthy options.

LAUREN COMPERE: You have to look at kind of all those pressure points. And we want to see sort of momentum of companies leaning in to healthier products.

AUBREY: She points to one recent example with Unilever, a U.K.-based company that owns several ice cream brands, including Ben and Jerry's. A coalition of shareholder²⁰ activists²¹ filed a resolution urging more transparency around the foods Unilever sells. Instead of the company using its own definitions of healthy, Unilever has now agreed to publish independent assessments²². The company also announced new targets earlier this year to increase the proportion of healthier foods it sells.

Allison Aubrey, NPR News.

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 dismal   

adj.阴沉的，凄凉的，令人忧郁的，差劲的

参考例句：

• That is a rather dismal melody.那是一支相当忧郁的歌曲。
• My prospects of returning to a suitable job are dismal.我重新找到一个合适的工作岗位的希望很渺茫。

3 investor   

n.投资者，投资人

参考例句：

• My nephew is a cautious investor.我侄子是个小心谨慎的投资者。
• The investor believes that his investment will pay off handsomely soon.这个投资者相信他的投资不久会有相当大的收益。

4 momentum   

n.动力，冲力，势头；动量

参考例句：

• We exploit the energy and momentum conservation laws in this way.我们就是这样利用能量和动量守恒定律的。
• The law of momentum conservation could supplant Newton's third law.动量守恒定律可以取代牛顿第三定律。

5 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

6 obesity   

n.肥胖，肥大

参考例句：

• One effect of overeating may be obesity.吃得过多能导致肥胖。
• Sugar and fat can more easily lead to obesity than some other foods.糖和脂肪比其他食物更容易导致肥胖。

7 diabetes   

n.糖尿病

参考例句：

• In case of diabetes, physicians advise against the use of sugar.对于糖尿病患者，医生告诫他们不要吃糖。
• Diabetes is caused by a fault in the insulin production of the body.糖尿病是由体內胰岛素分泌失调引起的。

8 affordable   

adj.支付得起的，不太昂贵的

参考例句：

• The rent for the four-roomed house is affordable.四居室房屋的房租付得起。
• There are few affordable apartments in big cities.在大城市中没有几所公寓是便宜的。

9 analyzed   

v.分析( analyze的过去式和过去分词 )；分解；解释；对…进行心理分析

参考例句：

• The doctors analyzed the blood sample for anemia. 医生们分析了贫血的血样。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The young man did not analyze the process of his captivation and enrapturement, for love to him was a mystery and could not be analyzed. 这年轻人没有分析自己蛊惑著迷的过程，因为对他来说，爱是个不可分析的迷。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 portfolios   

n.投资组合( portfolio的名词复数 )；（保险）业务量；（公司或机构提供的）系列产品；纸夹

参考例句：

• Price risk arises in non-trading portfolios, as well as in trading portfolios. 价格风险中出现的非贸易投资，以及在贸易投资组合。 来自互联网
• How do we fatten our portfolios and stay financially healthy? 我们怎样育肥我们的投资结构和维持财政健康呢？ 来自互联网

11 incremental   

adj.增加的

参考例句：

• For logic devices, the incremental current gain is very important. 对于逻辑器件来说，提高电流增益是非常重要的。 来自辞典例句
• By using an incremental approach, the problems involving material or geometric nonlinearity have been solved. 借应用一种增量方法，已经解决了包括材料的或几何的非线性问题。 来自辞典例句

12 leverage   

n.力量，影响；杠杆作用，杠杆的力量

参考例句：

• We'll have to use leverage to move this huge rock.我们不得不借助杠杆之力来移动这块巨石。
• He failed in the project because he could gain no leverage. 因为他没有影响力，他的计划失败了。

13 investors   

n.投资者，出资者( investor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a con man who bilked investors out of millions of dollars 诈取投资者几百万元的骗子
• a cash bonanza for investors 投资者的赚钱机会

14 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

15 spotlight   

n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目

参考例句：

• This week the spotlight is on the world of fashion.本周引人瞩目的是时装界。
• The spotlight followed her round the stage.聚光灯的光圈随着她在舞台上转。

16 awareness   

n.意识，觉悟，懂事，明智

参考例句：

• There is a general awareness that smoking is harmful.人们普遍认识到吸烟有害健康。
• Environmental awareness has increased over the years.这些年来人们的环境意识增强了。

17 enact   

vt.制定(法律)；上演，扮演

参考例句：

• The U.S. Congress has exclusive authority to enact federal legislation.美国国会是唯一有权颁布联邦法律的。
• For example,a country can enact laws and economic policies to attract foreign investment fairly quickly.例如一个国家可以很快颁布吸引外资的法令和经济政策。

18 compere   

v.主持（节目）

参考例句：

• Sarita Sabharwal compered the programme.萨里塔·萨巴瓦尔主持了这个节目。
• They asked Paul to compere.他们请保罗来主持。

19 marketing   

n.行销，在市场的买卖，买东西

参考例句：

• They are developing marketing network.他们正在发展销售网络。
• He often goes marketing.他经常去市场做生意。

20 shareholder   

n.股东，股票持有人

参考例句：

• The account department have prepare a financial statement for the shareholder.财务部为股东准备了一份财务报表。
• A shareholder may transfer his shares in accordance with the law.股东持有的股份可以依法转让。

21 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

22 assessments   

n.评估( assessment的名词复数 )；评价；（应偿付金额的）估定；（为征税对财产所作的）估价

参考例句：

• He was shrewd in his personal assessments. 他总能对人作出精明的评价。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Surveys show about two-thirds use such assessments, while half employ personality tests. 调查表明，约有三分之二的公司采用了这种测评；而一半的公司则采用工作人员个人品质测试。 来自百科语句