2008-12-01 亚马逊雨林的生命树之果

Across the river from Belem Brazil, the largest city in the Amazon Basin, the channels are busy with boat traffic. Here traditional river dwellers¹ make a living by harvesting the black fruit of the thin acai palm tree. In this part of the Amazon, acai has been part of the local diet, even before the arrival of the Portuguese².

Virtually unknown until 15 years ago, acai juice suddenly is a global super food, riding high on claims that it fights cholesterol³, is an anti-aging elixir⁴ and even acts as a natural Viagra. But skyrocketing demand has increased the price of acai where it’s most loved in Belem, the epicenter of the acai trade. According to the Associated Press, the city’s residents consume an estimated 200,000 liters of acai each day, making it more popular here than milk. A few years ago, a liter of acai juice costs 52 cents, today it’s 2 dollars and 60 cents.

In an area where monthly income often is less than 200 dollars, that price puts it out of reach from many of the people for whom acai is as much a culture as a beverage⁵. 

We sell just a little acai and we make good money. We can buy our foods, some clothes, a pair of shoes and so on. Before it was different, we sold acai very cheaply.

Even in Brazil acai wasn’t known much beyond Belem until the early 1990s. Because the fruit's juice spoils after about 24 hours, it couldn’t be shipped outside the region. But then acai producers figured out a way to freeze the pulp⁶, allowing it to be sent to Brazil’s populous⁷ South . Since freezing robs acai of much of its subtle flavor, producers bite it with Guarana syrup⁸ which help the drink catch on in the rest of the country. Health enthusiasts⁹ can be seen using spoons to attack bowls piled high with dark purple slush--the result when the thick frozen pulp is run through a blender. It’s valued for its combination of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, amino acids and helpful omega fats.

Ben-Hur Borges built a factory here five years ago processing acai berries into juice for export to the US and Europe.

Up till now, exports have been practically doubling from one year to the next in exported volume. I don’t believe now that there will be sufficient supply the double those of 11,000 tons again.

He now hopes to set up acai plantations¹⁰ to reduce its dependence¹¹ on river dwellers and fluctuating prices.

Meanwhile Belem residents still find ways to obtain the fruit despite rising costs. They buy lower quality juice or sacrifice other fruits. That’s because for many, acai with manioc flour, is all they eat for lunch and often dinner. And many will tell you they just can’t feel full without their daily dose of acai.

1 dwellers   

n.居民，居住者( dweller的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City dwellers think country folk have provincial attitudes. 城里人以为乡下人思想迂腐。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They have transformed themselves into permanent city dwellers. 他们已成为永久的城市居民。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 Portuguese   

n.葡萄牙人；葡萄牙语

参考例句：

• They styled their house in the Portuguese manner.他们仿照葡萄牙的风格设计自己的房子。
• Her family is Portuguese in origin.她的家族是葡萄牙血统。

3 cholesterol   

n.（U）胆固醇

参考例句：

• There is cholesterol in the cell of body.人体细胞里有胆固醇。
• They are determining the serum-protein and cholesterol levels.他们正在测定血清蛋白和胆固醇的浓度。

4 elixir   

n.长生不老药，万能药

参考例句：

• There is no elixir of life in the world.世界上没有长生不老药。
• Keep your mind awake and active;that's the only youth elixir.保持头脑清醒和灵活便是保持年轻的唯一灵丹妙药。

5 beverage   

n.(水，酒等之外的)饮料

参考例句：

• The beverage is often colored with caramel.这种饮料常用焦糖染色。
• Beer is a beverage of the remotest time.啤酒是一种最古老的饮料。

6 pulp   

n.果肉，纸浆；v.化成纸浆，除去...果肉，制成纸浆

参考例句：

• The pulp of this watermelon is too spongy.这西瓜瓤儿太肉了。
• The company manufactures pulp and paper products.这个公司制造纸浆和纸产品。

7 populous   

adj.人口稠密的，人口众多的

参考例句：

• London is the most populous area of Britain.伦敦是英国人口最稠密的地区。
• China is the most populous developing country in the world.中国是世界上人口最多的发展中国家。

8 syrup   

n.糖浆，糖水

参考例句：

• I skimmed the foam from the boiling syrup.我撇去了煮沸糖浆上的泡沫。
• Tinned fruit usually has a lot of syrup with it.罐头水果通常都有许多糖浆。

9 enthusiasts   

n.热心人，热衷者( enthusiast的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• A group of enthusiasts have undertaken the reconstruction of a steam locomotive. 一群火车迷已担负起重造蒸汽机车的任务。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Now a group of enthusiasts are going to have the plane restored. 一群热心人计划修复这架飞机。 来自新概念英语第二册

10 plantations   

n.种植园，大农场( plantation的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Soon great plantations, supported by slave labor, made some families very wealthy. 不久之后出现了依靠奴隶劳动的大庄园，使一些家庭成了富豪。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件
• Winterborne's contract was completed, and the plantations were deserted. 维恩特波恩的合同完成后，那片林地变得荒废了。 来自辞典例句

11 dependence   

n.依靠，依赖；信任，信赖；隶属

参考例句：

• Doctors keep trying to break her dependence of the drug.医生们尽力使她戒除毒瘾。
• He was freed from financial dependence on his parents.他在经济上摆脱了对父母的依赖。