VOA慢速英语2019--天价榴莲!每个售价1000美元

Strong-Smelling 'J-Queen' Durians Sell for $1,000 in Indonesia

An Indonesian form of durian has been sold in a store on the island of Java for what might be a record price: $1,000 for a single fruit.

Durian is enjoyed across many parts of Asia. The fruit is considered a treat, but also known for having a strong, unpleasant smell.

A group of farmers in central Java reportedly chose the “J-Queen” durian because it was said to have a special taste and feel. A farmer named Sudarno reported their comments. He grew the two rare durians, which were sold at a store in Tasikmalaya. They were sold for a little over $1,000 apiece.

Sudarno was asked why anyone would pay such a high price for a piece of fruit. He said the production from this particular durian tree had failed in recent seasons. But a new fertilizer¹ helped to produce fruit this year.

Sudarno described the fruit’s surface as creamy, like butter. “It’s sweet...fluffy² and delicious,” he told the Reuters news agency³.

Durian are often grown in small or family-operated farms. They are banned in some airports, public transportation systems and hotels in Southeast Asia because of their smell. The fruit is sometimes described as smelling like an open-air waste treatment center or turpentine when ready to eat.

Sudarno added that most of the 20 durians produced by his tree were not fully⁴ grown. Four were offered for sale, and two were sold. The others were made taken from the store after their quality worsened.

Sudarno did not know who bought the fruit.

I’m Jonathan Evans.

Words in this Story

turpentine – n. a kind of oil with a strong smell that is used to make paint thinner

creamy – adj. soft and smooth

fluffy – adj. light and soft or airy

delicious – adj. tasty

particular – adj. relating to or concerned with details

1 fertilizer   

n.肥料，化肥

参考例句：

• Fertilizer enriches the soil.肥料使土壤肥沃。
• Get some more fertilizer for the garden.给花园再多施些肥料。

2 fluffy   

adj.有绒毛的，空洞的

参考例句：

• Newly hatched chicks are like fluffy balls.刚孵出的小鸡像绒毛球。
• The steamed bread is very fluffy.馒头很暄。

3 agency   

n.经办；代理；代理处

参考例句：

• This disease is spread through the agency of insects.这种疾病是通过昆虫媒介传播的。
• He spoke in the person of Xinhua News Agency.他代表新华社讲话。

4 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。