VOA新闻杂志2022--海鲜界担心制裁俄罗斯会影响业内

The world's seafood¹ industry is preparing for higher prices, supply problems and possible job losses as restrictions² make products from Russia less available.

Experts say the continued restrictions meant to punish Russia, known as sanctions, will also affect the cost of fish in the U.S. and other countries.

Russia is one of the world's top producers of the ocean fish called cod³. It also supplies other seafood like crab⁴ and Alaska pollock.

Glen Libby is an owner of Port Clyde Fresh Catch, a seafood market in the U.S. state of Maine. If a seafood company gets cod from Russia, he said, the situation is "quite a mess."

The Associated Press said federal data shows that $50 million of Russian seafood products passed through Portland, Maine in 2021. Russia sent 12.7 million kilograms of cod to the United States during a two-year period ending in January 2022 AP reports.

In addition, other nations that import a lot of fish, such as Japan, will see higher prices as the supply from Russia is reduced. Europe and Britain also depend on Russia for fish.

Andrew Crook⁵ is the head of a trade group in Great Britain called the National Association of Fish Friers. He described the situation this way: "We are in real dire⁶ straits" because of rising fish and energy prices.

He predicted about 30 percent of the fish and chips stores in Britain would go out of business this year. Fish and chips is a traditional British meal of fried fish and potatoes.

He told British broadcaster ITV: "We're a massive part of U.K. culture and it would be a shame to see that go."

In the U.S., one expert said people who like to eat fish will see higher prices and fewer choices.

Kanae Tokunaga is an economics researcher in Maine. Tokunaga said even fish that do not come from Russia will be more costly⁷ "because seafood is a global commodity."

The U.S. depends on cod from other countries because it is harder for Americans to catch that kind of fish than it used to be. In the early 1980s, fishermen in the northeastern U.S. caught about 45 million kilograms of cod each year. Now, restrictions meant to preserve the fish population limit the catch to 900,000 kilograms.

Ed Markey is a U.S. senator from Massachusetts. He said seafood workers in his state are worried about losing their jobs.

Walt Golet is an assistant professor of Marine⁸ Sciences at the University of Maine. He said the U.S may be able to bring in a little more fish from Canada and Norway.

But a shortage of traditional species of fish may have one good effect, said Ben Mertens. He runs the Maine Coast Fishermen's Association.

He said it may be time for the fish business to start harvesting fish they used to leave in the water.

If sanctions are "going to disrupt supply chains, it does present an opportunity for other species..." he said.

Words in This Story

a mess –n. a situation that is very complex and difficult to deal with

dire straits –expression: a difficult position

a shame – n. something that you would not want to do; something regrettable

global – adj. involving or affecting the whole world

commodity– n. something that is bought and sold regularly in large amounts that is an important product

species– n. a group of animals or plants that are similar and can produce young animals or plants

disrupt– v. to cause (something) to be unable to continue in the normal way; to interfere⁹ with the normal progress or activity of (something)

supply chain– n. the whole system through which products go from producer to user

1 seafood   

n.海产食品，海味，海鲜

参考例句：

• There's an excellent seafood restaurant near here.离这儿不远有家非常不错的海鲜馆。
• Shrimps are a popular type of seafood.小虾是比较普遍的一种海味。

2 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

3 cod   

n.鳕鱼；v.愚弄；哄骗

参考例句：

• They salt down cod for winter use.他们腌鳕鱼留着冬天吃。
• Cod are found in the North Atlantic and the North Sea.北大西洋和北海有鳕鱼。

4 crab   

n.螃蟹，偏航，脾气乖戾的人，酸苹果；vi.捕蟹，偏航，发牢骚；vt.使偏航，发脾气

参考例句：

• I can't remember when I last had crab.我不记得上次吃蟹是什么时候了。
• The skin on my face felt as hard as a crab's back.我脸上的皮仿佛僵硬了，就象螃蟹的壳似的。

5 crook   

v.使弯曲；n.小偷，骗子，贼；弯曲(处)

参考例句：

• He demanded an apology from me for calling him a crook.我骂他骗子，他要我向他认错。
• She was cradling a small parcel in the crook of her elbow.她用手臂挎着一个小包裹。

6 dire   

adj.可怕的，悲惨的，阴惨的，极端的

参考例句：

• There were dire warnings about the dangers of watching too much TV.曾经有人就看电视太多的危害性提出严重警告。
• We were indeed in dire straits.But we pulled through.那时我们的困难真是大极了，但是我们渡过了困难。

7 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

8 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

9 interfere   

v.(in)干涉，干预；(with)妨碍，打扰

参考例句：

• If we interfere, it may do more harm than good.如果我们干预的话，可能弊多利少。
• When others interfere in the affair,it always makes troubles. 别人一卷入这一事件，棘手的事情就来了。