纪录片《饮食变迁》 第6期:商业化猪肉

Now, bit by bit,

现在 一点一点地

the chicken is stripped down to a shell to become a convenience food.

通过褪毛加工直到变成一种便利的食品

With a pause of only 35 minutes for lunch and two breaks for tea,

除了35分钟午餐和两次喝茶时间外

all day long the procession of birds goes by.

工人全天要面对一排排的鸡经过

This is a process which is inevitable¹, a process which must go on

这个过程是不可避免的 必须继续下去

and a process which we can do nothing but admire.

我们所能做的只有钦佩

The end of the production line.

产品线的最后

Conceived by the geneticist and realised in a factory,

由遗传学家构想并由工厂实现

it's grown in nine weeks from 1.5 ounces to three pounds,

它能在9周内从1.5盎司长到3磅

the weight that the housewife wants,

这是主妇们想要的重量

and at a price that most people can afford.

且在大多数人可承受的价格之内

The march of progress was relentless².

工业化发展进程不断推进

But in their urge to squeeze maximum efficiency out of the farmyard,

但由于急切追求产出最大化

scientists sometimes went to extremes.

科学家们往往会走向极端

Animals kept completely free of the main farm diseases thrived,

动物们完全不必经受农场中盛行的疫病

putting on weight at an

以理想速率增重的同时

exceptional rate and with much lower mortality.

还伴随着相对低得多的死亡率

By rearing a whole herd³ of germ-free piglets in incubators

通过在孵化器中培育一群无菌小猪

and keeping them away from other animals in a sealed-off building,

让它们在密闭空间内远离其它动物

commercial herds⁴ of pigs for meat

商业化肉猪

have been produced that are the healthiest pigs in the

已被培育成全国最健康的猪种0

country, with quite an edge over their nearest normal competitors.

完胜它们的普通竞争者

1 inevitable   

adj.不可避免的，必然发生的

参考例句：

• Mary was wearing her inevitable large hat.玛丽戴着她总是戴的那顶大帽子。
• The defeat had inevitable consequences for British policy.战败对英国政策不可避免地产生了影响。

2 relentless   

adj.残酷的，不留情的，无怜悯心的

参考例句：

• The traffic noise is relentless.交通车辆的噪音一刻也不停止。
• Their training has to be relentless.他们的训练必须是无情的。

3 herd   

n.兽群，牧群；vt.使集中，把…赶在一起

参考例句：

• She drove the herd of cattle through the wilderness.她赶着牛群穿过荒野。
• He had no opinions of his own but simply follow the herd.他从无主见，只是人云亦云。

4 herds   

兽群( herd的名词复数 )； 牧群； 人群； 群众

参考例句：

• Regularly at daybreak they drive their herds to the pasture. 每天天一亮他们就把牲畜赶到草场上去。
• There we saw herds of cows grazing on the pasture. 我们在那里看到一群群的牛在草地上吃草。