VOA标准英语2012--Burger Makers Fight to Repeal Biofuel Law
时间:2019-01-14 作者:英语课 分类:VOA标准英语2012年(十二月)
Burger Makers 1 Fight to Repeal 2 Biofuel Law
Corn competition
When you drive up to Wendy's or other fast-food chains in the U.S., you are consuming corn in at least two ways.
The chicken or hamburger in your meal comes from an animal raised on corn.
Since the fuel in your car is 10 percent ethanol, which is made from corn, the two are competing for the same grain.
“Ethanol diverts a significant share of the US corn crop each year," says University of Missouri economist 3 Pat Westhoff. "And, by doing so, it makes corn prices higher than they otherwise would be.”
Higher corn prices mean higher meat prices.
Ethanol has consumed a growing share of the corn market since a 2005 law required it be added to U.S. gasoline.
Now, the chain restaurant industry wants the law repealed 4.
At a recent news conference, franchise 5 owner Ed Anderson said that the mandate 6 costs each of his four Wendy’s restaurants up to $30,000 per year.
“Congress passed the ethanol mandate, and now restaurants are being hit at a time our economy can’t afford it,” he said.
Questionable 7 impact
But not everyone agrees the law is driving up food prices.
They note that even in this year’s record-breaking drought, when corn prices hit new highs, the federal government declined to waive 8 the law. Studies by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) found doing so would only change the price of corn by a few cents.
“It moves three or four cents on a sneeze on the floor of the Chicago Board of Trade," says Renewable Fuels Association chief Bob Dinneen. "So waiving 9 this program wasn’t going to provide any relief. Ethanol was not driving the price increase. There was no reason to waive the program.”
Dinneen says ethanol is reducing dependence 10 on foreign oil and holding down the price of gasoline.
Little difference?
Ethanol is typically cheaper than petroleum 11. Fuel makers now add it to gasoline regardless of the law. So waiving the mandate might not not matter much in the short term.
“We don’t think there would be a large impact on the prices of ethanol and the prices of corn and the amount of corn that’s being used for ethanol production in the very short term," says Pat Westhoff. "If those policies were to change forever and ever, then there might be larger changes in front of us.”
Current policy calls for increased use of ethanol. Westhoff says that will require even more corn and put more pressure on food prices.
That is, unless other biofuels take the place of corn ethanol. The Renewable Fuels Association’s Bob Dinneen says fuels not made from food crops are coming - thanks to corn ethanol.
“The grain ethanol industry has built the markets, it’s established the technology, it’s created the policies that are allowing those other industries to come into commercial scale," he says. "We are the foundation on which those new fuels will materialize.”
But until those fuels do materialize, the tension between burgers and biofuels will continue.
- The makers of the product assured us that there had been no sacrifice of quality. 这一产品的制造商向我们保证说他们没有牺牲质量。
- The makers are about to launch out a new product. 制造商们马上要生产一种新产品。 来自《简明英汉词典》
- He plans to repeal a number of current policies.他计划废除一些当前的政策。
- He has made out a strong case for the repeal of the law.他提出强有力的理由,赞成废除该法令。
- He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
- He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家,自以为什么都懂。
- The Labour Party repealed the Act. 工党废除了那项法令。
- The legislature repealed the unpopular Rent Act. 立法机关废除了不得人心的租借法案。
- Catering in the schools is run on a franchise basis.学校餐饮服务以特许权经营。
- The United States granted the franchise to women in 1920.美国于1920年给妇女以参政权。
- The President had a clear mandate to end the war.总统得到明确的授权结束那场战争。
- The General Election gave him no such mandate.大选并未授予他这种权力。
- There are still a few questionable points in the case.这个案件还有几个疑点。
- Your argument is based on a set of questionable assumptions.你的论证建立在一套有问题的假设上。
- I'll record to our habitat office waive our claim immediately.我立即写信给咱们的总公司提出放弃索赔。
- In view of the unusual circumstances,they agree to waive their requirement.鉴于特殊情况,他们同意放弃他们的要求。
- Other steps suggested included waiving late payment charges, making quicker loan decisions and easing loan terms. 其他测试还包括免去滞纳金,尽快做出贷款决定和放宽贷款条件。 来自互联网
- Stuyvesant Town offers the same perk on some apartments, along waiving the broker's fee. StuyvesantTown对于他们出租的某些房子也提供同样的好处,顺带还省略了中介费。 来自互联网
- Doctors keep trying to break her dependence of the drug.医生们尽力使她戒除毒瘾。
- He was freed from financial dependence on his parents.他在经济上摆脱了对父母的依赖。