【英语时差8,16】有机农业在泰国慢慢萌芽

When Anothai Kongwattana decided¹ to open a healthful vegetarian² restaurant in Bangkok she ran into one minor³ problem: She couldn't find any organic vegetables on the market.

Her solution was to launch her own organic farm. With the help of her husband, Gaan Ritkhachorn, the couple launched the "Pluk Rak," or "Grow Love" Farm in Ratchaburi, a two-hour drive from Bangkok, in June 1999.

By August 2000, it was supplying truckloads of organically grown vegetables to the Anothai Restaurant, now a well-established eatery among health-conscious gourmands⁴.

"They are one of the lighthouses," said Burghard Rauschelbach, director of an organic project of German Technical Cooperation (GTZ), a German government aid agency, in Thailand. "Anothai's farm ...［really is］working according to organic standards."

Remarkably⁵, although Thailand ranks as one of world's leading food exporters and has aspirations⁶ to become "the kitchen of the world," the kingdom ranks 13th in Asia among organic food producers.

Organic crops are considerably⁷ more expensive to grow than their conventional cousins, which is one reason most farmers shun⁸ them.

And some of the "organic" products on sale in Bangkok are not really organic. While there is an organic certification process in place for exported products, there are not similar standards placed on domestically sold organic foods.

"The point is, if Thailand wants to become the organic food kitchen of the world their government will have to invest in it," said GTZ's Rauschelbach.

1 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

2 vegetarian   

n.素食者；adj.素食的

参考例句：

• She got used gradually to the vegetarian diet.她逐渐习惯吃素食。
• I didn't realize you were a vegetarian.我不知道你是个素食者。

3 minor   

adj.较小(少)的，较次要的；n.辅修学科；vi.辅修

参考例句：

• The young actor was given a minor part in the new play.年轻的男演员在这出新戏里被分派担任一个小角色。
• I gave him a minor share of my wealth.我把小部分财产给了他。

4 gourmands   

n.喜欢吃喝的人，贪吃的人( gourmand的名词复数 )；美食主义

参考例句：

• The food here satisfies gourmands rather than gourmets. 这里的食物可以管饱却不讲究品质。 来自辞典例句

5 remarkably   

ad.不同寻常地，相当地

参考例句：

• I thought she was remarkably restrained in the circumstances. 我认为她在那种情况下非常克制。
• He made a remarkably swift recovery. 他康复得相当快。

6 aspirations   

强烈的愿望( aspiration的名词复数 )； 志向； 发送气音； 发 h 音

参考例句：

• I didn't realize you had political aspirations. 我没有意识到你有政治上的抱负。
• The new treaty embodies the aspirations of most nonaligned countries. 新条约体现了大多数不结盟国家的愿望。

7 considerably   

adv.极大地；相当大地；在很大程度上

参考例句：

• The economic situation has changed considerably.经济形势已发生了相当大的变化。
• The gap has narrowed considerably.分歧大大缩小了。

8 shun   

vt.避开，回避，避免

参考例句：

• Materialists face truth,whereas idealists shun it.唯物主义者面向真理，唯心主义者则逃避真理。
• This extremist organization has shunned conventional politics.这个极端主义组织有意避开了传统政治。