在线英语听力室

Companies Develop Technologies to Deal with Food Waste

时间：2022-12-22 06:03:48

搜索关注在线英语听力室公众号：tingroom，领取免费英语资料大礼包。

（单词翻译）

Companies Develop Technologies to Deal with Food Waste

Restaurants, farmers, and food businesses are turning to chemistry and physics to deal with the problem of food waste.

Some companies are testing coverings to slow the ripening2 process in fruit and packets to keep food fresh. Others are developing digital sensors4 that can tell when meat is safe to eat.

Background

Experts say growing awareness5 of the costs of food waste has led to more efforts to deal with the problem. ReFed is a group that studies food waste. It says new businesses have raised $300 billion in 2021, double the amount raised in 2020, to deal with the problem.

The group estimates that in 2019, around 35 percent of food available in the U.S. — worth about $418 billion — went unsold or uneaten. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says that food waste is the largest kind of material placed in local waste areas. And the agency notes that rotting food releases methane6, a gas that is not good for the environment.

ReFed estimates 225,000 kilograms of food could be kept out of waste areas each year with special, high-tech7 coverings.

Many companies are working on ways to help reduce food waste.

Sweden-based Innoscentia is developing a sensor3 that can show if meat is safe to eat by measuring the buildup of microbes inside its container. And Ryp Labs, based in the U.S. and Belgium, is working on a sticker for fruits and vegetables that would release gas to slow ripening.

SavrPak has developed a plant-based packet that can fit inside a container and take in moisture, helping8 keep the food inside hotter and crispier.

Issues

But the cost can be a barrier for some companies and shoppers. Kroger, the largest food-store company in the U.S., ended its deal with Apeel Sciences this year. The deal ended because Kroger said shoppers were not willing to pay more for fruits with Apeel's special covering to keep them fresh.

Apeel says its special covering is made of common food additives9. It says treated avocados can last a few extra days, while treated oranges can last for several weeks. The company says that it continues to talk to Kroger about other future technology.

Another big issue is how to deal with different care requirements for different kinds of food to prevent waste.

"There is no one major change that can improve the situation," said Randy Beaudry of Michigan State University's school of agriculture.

Beaudry said the complexity10 of the issue has caused some food waste projects to fail. He added that it is also hard to sort out which technology works best since new companies do not always share data with outside researchers.

Some companies find it better to use proven technology in new ways.

For example, Chicago-based Hazel Technologies has been selling a chemical compound, called 1-MCP, that is used in a room to slow the ripening process in fruit. The company now sells packets that can slowly release 1-MCP into small containers of fruits.

Mike Mazie oversees11 BelleHarvest, a large apple packing facility in Belding, Michigan. He ordered around 3,000 of the packets this year to use for apples that could not fit inside rooms treated with the compound.

"If you can get another week out of a bushel of apples, why wouldn't you?" he said. "It absolutely makes a difference.

The science is promising12, but it is only part of the solution, said Yvette Cabrera. She is the director of food waste for the Natural Resources Defense13 Council.

Most food waste happens at home, she said. Reducing food sizes, buying smaller quantities, or improving the accuracy of freshness date could have even more effects than new technology.

"Overall as a society, we don't value food as it should be valued," Cabrera said.

Words in This Story

ripen1 – v. to become ripe and ready to eat

packet – n. a small, thin package

moisture – n. a small amount of a liquid (such as water) that makes something wet or moist

crisp – adj. pleasantly firm and making a sharp sound when chewed or crushed

pack – v. to put (something) into a box or other container so that it can be moved, stored, or protected

bushel – n. a unit for measuring an amount of fruit and grain that is equal to about 35.2 liters in the U.S. and to about 36.4 liters in the U.K.


分享到：


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 ripen ph3yq     
vt.使成熟；vi.成熟
参考例句：
  • I'm waiting for the apples to ripen.我正在等待苹果成熟。
  • You can ripen the tomatoes on a sunny windowsill.把西红柿放在有阳光的窗台上可以让它们成熟。
2 ripening 5dd8bc8ecf0afaf8c375591e7d121c56     
v.成熟，使熟( ripen的现在分词 )；熟化；熟成
参考例句：
  • The corn is blossoming [ripening]. 玉米正在开花[成熟]。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
  • When the summer crop is ripening, the autumn crop has to be sowed. 夏季作物成熟时，就得播种秋季作物。 来自《简明英汉词典》
3 sensor sz7we     
n.传感器，探测设备，感觉器（官）
参考例句：
  • The temperature sensor is enclosed in a protective well.温度传感器密封在保护套管中。
  • He plugged the sensor into a outlet.他把传感器插进电源插座。
4 sensors 029aee483db9ae244d7a5cb353e74602     
n.传感器，灵敏元件( sensor的名词复数 )
参考例句：
  • There were more than 2000 sensors here. 这里装有两千多个灵敏元件。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Significant changes have been noted where sensors were exposed to trichloride. 当传感器暴露在三氯化物中时，有很大变化。 来自辞典例句
5 awareness 4yWzdW     
n.意识，觉悟，懂事，明智
参考例句：
  • There is a general awareness that smoking is harmful.人们普遍认识到吸烟有害健康。
  • Environmental awareness has increased over the years.这些年来人们的环境意识增强了。
6 methane t1Eyx     
n.甲烷，沼气
参考例句：
  • The blast was caused by pockets of methane gas that ignited.爆炸是由数袋甲烷气体着火引起的。
  • Methane may have extraterrestrial significance.甲烷具有星际意义。
7 high-tech high-tech     
adj.高科技的
参考例句：
  • The economy is in the upswing which makes high-tech services in more demand too.经济在蓬勃发展，这就使对高科技服务的需求量也在加大。
  • The quest of a cure for disease with high-tech has never ceased. 人们希望运用高科技治疗疾病的追求从未停止过。
8 helping 2rGzDc     
n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的
参考例句：
  • The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
  • By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。
9 additives cf3f12a049807f79b9faf1553e074059     
n.添加剂( additive的名词复数 )
参考例句：
  • chemical additives in petrol 汽油中的化学添加剂
  • It'says on the packet that these crisps contain no additives. 包装上说这些炸薯片不含添加剂。 来自《简明英汉词典》
10 complexity KO9z3     
n.复杂(性)，复杂的事物
参考例句：
  • Only now did he understand the full complexity of the problem.直到现在他才明白这一问题的全部复杂性。
  • The complexity of the road map puzzled me.错综复杂的公路图把我搞糊涂了。
11 oversees 4607550c43b2b83434e5e72ac137def4     
v.监督，监视( oversee的第三人称单数 )
参考例句：
  • She oversees both the research and the manufacturing departments. 她既监督研究部门又监督生产部门。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • The Department of Education oversees the federal programs dealing with education. 教育部监管处理教育的联邦程序。 来自互联网
12 promising BkQzsk     
adj.有希望的，有前途的
参考例句：
  • The results of the experiments are very promising.实验的结果充满了希望。
  • We're trying to bring along one or two promising young swimmers.我们正设法培养出一两名有前途的年轻游泳选手。
13 defense AxbxB     
n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩
参考例句：
  • The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
  • The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

本文本内容来源于互联网抓取和网友提交，仅供参考，部分栏目没有内容，如果您有更合适的内容，欢迎 点击提交 分享给大家。