美国国家公共电台 NPR--Hot, dry conditions scorch Kansas wheat — putting crops and farmers at risk

Hot, dry conditions scorch¹ Kansas wheat — putting crops and farmers at risk

Transcript²

Drought is likely to cut wheat harvests by one-third in Kansas. Declines in the country's top wheat producing state are likely to mean higher prices for flour, bread and pasta.

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Hot, dry conditions are scorching³ the wheat crop in Kansas. Here's Nebraska Public Media's Elizabeth Rembert.

ELIZABETH REMBERT, BYLINE⁴: Usually, Kansas is known for its fields of waist-high golden wheat. But this year, the blistering⁵ conditions have withered⁶ some of the crop into short, patchy straw. Standing⁷ in one of his fields in northwest Kansas, Chris Tanner wonders if it'll even make it through harvest.

CHRIS TANNER: I mean, like, this head down here, there's going to be nothing in it. It'll blow out the back of the combine. You can see the seeds kind of exposed there. It'll shatter out even before we get here.

REMBERT: It's fields like these leading industry groups to predict a 100 million bushel drop in Kansas' wheat harvest this year. That's 30% less than last year's harvest. Kansas is one of the country's top wheat-producing states, so a smaller crop could make a dent⁸. Joseph Glauber with the International Food Policy Research Institute says the timing⁹ is unfortunate.

JOSEPH GLAUBER: Wheat was tight to begin with, all of a sudden. Ukraine has, you know, anywhere from 5 to 7 million tons of last year's crop that normally would have been marketed by now that's stuck inside the country. So you look at the wheat market. Then you think, OK, well, who can make up this grain?

REMBERT: Well, maybe not Kansas. And Kansas wheat farmers will likely miss out on profiting from historic prices. Wheat's asking price has shot up 50% this year. A 100 million bushel drop works out to a $1 billion loss for Kansas farmers. Here's Chris Tanner again.

TANNER: I don't know. Prices are good. But if you don't have anything to sell, it doesn't really matter what the prices are, so...

REMBERT: It's a double whammy because high fertilizer and fuel prices make it so expensive to grow crops lately. After all, it takes more than just sunshine and water. Let's run the numbers.

TANNER: Just throw 50 bucks¹⁰ out there for rent. I said I put a hundred pounds of fertilizer out. Well, right now current price of fertilizer is a little over a dollar a pound. So there's a hundred and fifty dollars. Now, your herbicide expense is going to be about $10. Harvest expense - approximately $40 an acre. Drilling expense - $20 an acre.

REMBERT: So he's shelled out at least $220. This field usually raises as much as 50 bushels an acre. With the drought, Tanner thinks he'll be lucky to get 20 this year. Even with wheat fetching about $11 a bushel, he'd lose money on that field.

TANNER: And see, we've rapidly wound up in the hole, so...

REMBERT: Farmers need a solid harvest to balance expenses. The drought's threatening that bottom line and could push wheat prices even higher. Bill Lapp is an agricultural economist¹¹ in Omaha.

BILL LAPP: We're going to have the smallest - the hard red winter wheat crop since 1963. It's made a bad situation worse. And, you know, the cure for high prices, of course, is high prices.

REMBERT: Lapp says bread prices have been ticking up over the past year. A smaller harvest could push up prices to consumers for everything wheat is used in. Chris Tanner says coming up short in the face of global wheat scarcity¹² isn't just a missed paycheck for Kansas farmers. It's personally disappointing.

TANNER: Right now the world is in desperate need of wheat, and we want to do as best of a job as we can to feed them. But we can only do what Mother Nature's allowing right now.

REMBERT: And for now, Mother Nature's holding back Kansas farmers from helping¹³ with the global wheat supply.

For NPR News, I'm Elizabeth Rembert.

(SOUNDBITE OF SWEEPS' "SUNDAY BLUNTS")

1 scorch   

v.烧焦，烤焦；高速疾驶；n.烧焦处，焦痕

参考例句：

• I could not wash away the mark of the scorch.我洗不掉这焦痕。
• This material will scorch easily if it is too near the fire.这种材料如果太靠近炉火很容易烤焦。

2 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。

3 scorching   

adj. 灼热的

参考例句：

• a scorching, pitiless sun 灼热的骄阳
• a scorching critique of the government's economic policy 对政府经济政策的严厉批评

4 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。

5 blistering   

adj.酷热的；猛烈的；使起疱的；可恶的v.起水疱；起气泡；使受暴晒n.[涂料] 起泡

参考例句：

• The runners set off at a blistering pace. 赛跑运动员如脱缰野马般起跑了。
• This failure is known as preferential wetting and is responsible for blistering. 这种故障称为优先吸湿，是产生气泡的原因。 来自辞典例句

6 withered   

adj. 枯萎的，干瘪的，（人身体的部分器官）因病萎缩的或未发育良好的 动词wither的过去式和过去分词形式

参考例句：

• The grass had withered in the warm sun. 这些草在温暖的阳光下枯死了。
• The leaves of this tree have become dry and withered. 这棵树下的叶子干枯了。

7 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

8 dent   

n.凹痕，凹坑；初步进展

参考例句：

• I don't know how it came about but I've got a dent in the rear of my car.我不知道是怎么回事，但我的汽车后部有了一个凹痕。
• That dent is not big enough to be worth hammering out.那个凹陷不大，用不着把它锤平。

9 timing   

n.时间安排，时间选择

参考例句：

• The timing of the meeting is not convenient.会议的时间安排不合适。
• The timing of our statement is very opportune.我们发表声明选择的时机很恰当。

10 bucks   

n.雄鹿( buck的名词复数 )；钱；（英国十九世纪初的）花花公子；（用于某些表达方式）责任v.（马等）猛然弓背跃起( buck的第三人称单数 )；抵制；猛然震荡；马等尥起后蹄跳跃

参考例句：

• They cost ten bucks. 这些值十元钱。
• They are hunting for bucks. 他们正在猎雄兔。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

12 scarcity   

n.缺乏，不足，萧条

参考例句：

• The scarcity of skilled workers is worrying the government.熟练工人的缺乏困扰着政府。
• The scarcity of fruit was caused by the drought.水果供不应求是由于干旱造成的。

13 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。