VOA慢速英语2017 科学家培育生物营养强化种子对抗营养不良

One in eight people in the world do not get enough to eat.

世界上八分之一的人口没有足够的食物。 

One in three are lacking in what health experts call essential nutrients 1. These are the vitamins, minerals, fatty acids 2 and other nutrients that the body needs for good health.

三分之一的人口缺乏健康专家所说的基本营养物。即维他命、矿物质、脂肪酸以及其他身体维持健康所需的营养物质。

A Washington, D.C.- based organization is trying to reduce hunger and its effects through better, more-nutritious 3 crops.

总部位于华盛顿的一家机构尝试通过更好更营养的粮食作物来减少饥饿。 

The group is creating seeds that grow into more nutrient-rich crops than normal ones. This process called biofortification.

该机构培育的种子，能够生长出更富营养的粮食作物。这一过程被称为生物营养强化。 

A non-profit group called HarvestPlus created the seeds. Bev Postma is the head of HarvestPlus.

非营利组织HarvestPlus培育了这些种子。贝福.波斯特马是该组织的负责人。 

It’s very important that the seeds are not just high in nutrition, but that they are still high-yielding, they’re pest-resistant, they’re climate-resistant -- because these are the things that farmers still want more.

“最重要的是，这些种子不但营养丰富、高产、防虫害、耐气候，这些都是农民们更需要的。” 

If people do not get enough essential nutrients from the foods they eat, they are more likely to get sick or develop infections. In some cases, they can go blind or they may not grow to their full height and weight.

如果人们不能从所食食物中获得足够的基本营养物，他们会容易生病感染。某些情况下，他们还有可能失明、不能发育完全。

Postma says two billion people are at risk of the most serious effects of this "hidden hunger." She says 450,000 people die every year because of poor nutrition.

波斯特马说20亿人处于隐蔽性饥饿严重影响的威胁下。她还说道，每年有45万人死于营养不良。 

HarvestPlus scientists have created 150 kinds of 12 food crops, including corn, beans, rice, lentils and wheat. They have shipped the seeds to 30 developing countries, reaching an estimated 5 20 million people since 2003.

HarvestPlus的科学家们培育了150种12类粮食作物，包括玉米、大豆、水稻、扁豆和小麦。自2003年起，他们将种子运至30个发展中国家，造福约2000万人。

Postma says the group hopes to reach one billion by 2030.

波斯特马说他们机构希望在2030年造福十亿人。 

We’re not trying to change behavior -- we are looking to see what people are eating and we’re just switching out to make that food more nutritious.

“我们不是想改变饮食行为，我们想要看看人们都在吃什么，然后想办法让食物更加营养。” 

Biofortified seeds are not genetically 6 engineered.

生物营养强化种子不属于基因工程。 

HarvestPlus distributes its seeds through seed companies and sometimes directly to farmers.

HarvestPlus通过种子公司发放种子，有时也直接分给农民。 

We’ve learned 7 that in some countries if we give the seed away, we can encourage the farmers to not just grow this new variety, but then ask them to give the next year’s seed that they harvest to four new farmers.

“我们意识到，在一些国家，如果我们将种子分发出去，我们可以鼓励农民不要只种植新品种，而要将明年他们收获的种子分给其他四个农民。”

Words in This Story

yield 4 – v. to produce or provide (something, such as a plant or crop)

pest – n. an animal or insect that causes problems for people especially by damaging crops

switch – v. to change or replace (something) with another thing

distribute – v. to give or deliver (something) to people

encourage – v. to tell or advise (someone) to do something

variety – n. a particular kind of person or thing