国家地理-2008-05-26 World Food in Crisis 粮食危机搅动世界

It’s being called the world’s worst food crisis since the 1970s. Around the globe, food prices have risen about 40% in the last year, sparking protests and violence in at least 14 countries, and pushing the problem to center stage at the United Nations.

"The rapidly escalating¹ crisis of food availability around the world has reached emergency proportions." Economists² blame the runaway³ prices on an imbalance between the world’s supply of food and a recent rise in demand.

Demand has been growing rapidly as a result of rapid income growth in many developing countries, especially as you know, in China, in India, and elsewhere in Asia. Even as the world is eating more, some farmers in the west have turned to growing corn or sugar cane⁴ or something other than food to produce fuel. This year, as much as a quarter of the US corn crop will go to ethanol plants reducing the land available to grow food. Grain has also become increasingly valuable on the global market, partly because droughts around the world, especially in Australia, have led to poor harvests. Other grain-producing countries, such as Argentina and  Ukraine have cut back grain exports in a bid to control inflation at home. The result in spikes⁵ and cost of food has sparked violent protests in the Caribbean, Africa and Asia. In  recent months, Egypt was rocked by two days of riots over high food prices and low wages. Demonstrators took to the streets in Peru, and crowds looted in Somalia. In Haiti, violent protests claimed several lives and cost Haitian Prime Minister Jacques-Edouard Alexis his job. In Vietnam panic shoppers flocked to markets to stock up on rice which rose 100% over a 48-hour period.

Local consumers saw people lining⁶ up to buy rice in other countries on TV, so they got in a panic. But Vietnam produces rice. It is  impossible for our country to have a rice shortage problem.

Hardest-hit by the food crisis are the world’s poor. People in developing countries spend up to 70% of their income on food. So rising prices can quickly lead to hunger. But even in wealthy countries, consumers are feeling pinched. In the US, many shoppers are clipping coupons⁷ and cutting back on luxury items. US food prices in 2008 are forecast to rise about double the increases of recent years. Experts expect world food prices to rise even further. But even when supply and demand find a new equilibrium⁸, few expect prices to drop much, if any, suggesting that more expensive food is here to stay.

Vocabulary Mix 
runaway:  happening very easily or quickly, and not able to be controlled
sugar cane: A tall tropical southeast Asian grass(Saccharum officinarum)  having thick, solid, tough stems that are a chief commercial source of sugar.
bid: an attempt to do something

1 escalating   

v.（使）逐步升级( escalate的现在分词 )；（使）逐步扩大；（使）更高；（使）更大

参考例句：

• The cost of living is escalating. 生活费用在迅速上涨。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The cost of living is escalating in the country. 这个国家的生活费用在上涨。 来自辞典例句

2 economists   

n.经济学家，经济专家( economist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The sudden rise in share prices has confounded economists. 股价的突然上涨使经济学家大惑不解。
• Foreign bankers and economists cautiously welcomed the minister's initiative. 外国银行家和经济学家对部长的倡议反应谨慎。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 runaway   

n.逃走的人，逃亡，亡命者；adj.逃亡的，逃走的

参考例句：

• The police have not found the runaway to date.警察迄今没抓到逃犯。
• He was praised for bringing up the runaway horse.他勒住了脱缰之马受到了表扬。

4 cane   

n.手杖，细长的茎，藤条；v.以杖击，以藤编制的

参考例句：

• This sugar cane is quite a sweet and juicy.这甘蔗既甜又多汁。
• English schoolmasters used to cane the boys as a punishment.英国小学老师过去常用教鞭打男学生作为惩罚。

5 spikes   

n.穗( spike的名词复数 )；跑鞋；（防滑）鞋钉；尖状物v.加烈酒于( spike的第三人称单数 )；偷偷地给某人的饮料加入（更多）酒精（ 或药物）；把尖状物钉入；打乱某人的计划

参考例句：

• a row of iron spikes on a wall 墙头的一排尖铁
• There is a row of spikes on top of the prison wall to prevent the prisoners escaping. 监狱墙头装有一排尖钉，以防犯人逃跑。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 lining   

n.衬里，衬料

参考例句：

• The lining of my coat is torn.我的外套衬里破了。
• Moss makes an attractive lining to wire baskets.用苔藓垫在铁丝篮里很漂亮。

7 coupons   

n.礼券( coupon的名词复数 )；优惠券；订货单；参赛表

参考例句：

• The company gives away free coupons for drinks or other items. 公司为饮料或其它项目发放免费赠券。 来自辞典例句
• Do you have any coupons? 你们有优惠卡吗？ 来自英汉 - 翻译样例 - 口语

8 equilibrium   

n.平衡，均衡，相称，均势，平静

参考例句：

• Change in the world around us disturbs our inner equilibrium.我们周围世界的变化扰乱了我们内心的平静。
• This is best expressed in the form of an equilibrium constant.这最好用平衡常数的形式来表示。