印度庆祝大米50周年,使其摆脱了饥荒

US India Celebrates 50th Anniversary for Rice That Prevented Famines 印度庆祝大米50周年,使其摆脱了饥荒

The rice plant is called IR8. It was the creation of scientists at the International Rice Research Institute in the Philippines.

Scientists created the IR8 variety by combining a tall rice plant from Indonesia and a shorter version from China.

IR8 was the world’s first highly productive rice. It is credited with having prevented famines and providing food for millions of people.

Agricultural experts say IR8 rice is partly responsible for the Green Revolution, which began in the 1940s and continued through the 1960s. During this period, farmers increased their use of man-made fertilizers and pesticides², and irrigation systems to water crops. Food production sharply increased and helped prevent widespread hunger.

India and the International Rice Research Institute have been celebrating the 50th anniversary of IR8 rice, which became known as “miracle rice.”

Farmer Rao, now 80 years old, remembers his surprise when he harvested a shocking 7.5 tons of rice on every hectare.

“Never before,” he said. “Every farmer feeling very, very, very happy, happy. 100 percent success.”

Many Asian countries struggled with food shortages in the 1960s and 1970s. IR8 and other varieties that followed helped increase rice production in Asia by 200 percent. The increase helped prevent widespread hunger.

“It transformed agriculture,” said Dr. Nafees Meah, the institute’s representative for South Asia. He said the Green Revolution prevented the food crises that happened in those years. “It saved millions of lives.”

After India, IR8 rice was planted in other Asian countries, such as the Philippines, Vietnam and Cambodia, where rice is the main food for most people.

Agriculture experts say that the plant’s shorter length made IR8 rice stronger and less likely to fail before harvest time. And, it took less time to grow compared to local rice. So, farmers could plant more than one crop on the same land.?

Recalling the Green Revolution

Even with the rise in food production, the Green Revolution also led to some long-term troubles.

As The New York Times reported, crops such as IR8 rice required heavy use of pesticides and chemical fertilizers.

This method of agriculture left behind chemical pollution, noted³ U.S. News & World Report magazine. It also used up a lot of soil nutrients⁴, and eventually led to soil depletion⁵. So, farmers needed more and more fertilizer, according to National Public Radio (NPR).

Crops like IR8 also needed more water than natural rainfall offered, so farmers had to irrigate⁶ the soil and build wells, NPR noted. In India, this caused the groundwater to sink as much as one meter each year.

This “package of practices” was costly⁷, especially for poor farmers. Many of the farmers used credit to buy the products and services, but could not pay back their loans. So, they went into debt, lost their land, and were forced to move to crowded cities to find work. After they left, richer farmers bought their land.

There was very little work on the larger farms because farmers began turning to tractors and other modern equipment. So, human labor⁸ decreased, creating high rural unemployment in some areas.

Widespread planting of only one or two varieties of rice also reduced biodiversity. In the long-term, this can lead to the spread of disease among plants.

Feeding a growing world

The methods used during the Green Revolution saved nearly one billion people from starvation, according to the New York Times. However, experts are divided on whether the lasting⁹ results are more good than bad.

Today food security is still an issue, and not just for Asia. At the same time, malnourishment continues to affect millions of poor people on the continent. And everywhere, farmers are dealing¹⁰ with issues resulting from climate change.

Rod Wing is an American scientist at the International Rice Research Institute. He says developing new kinds of rice with more nutrients but less of a harmful effect on the environment can reduce our dependence¹¹ on gases linked to climate change. The problem, he says, is that the rice must require less water, fertilizer, and pesticides.

In recent years, new kinds of rice that are more resistant¹² to dry weather and floods are showing promising¹³ results in eastern India and Bangladesh, a country where floods used to cover or wash away crops.

A genetically¹⁴ engineered variety of rice has been developed to improve Vitamin A levels. Lack of Vitamin A kills many children under the age of five. In addition, researchers are developing crops that keep blood sugar lower and release energy slowly.

But the challenge of productivity that IR8 rice fueled remains¹⁵, noted Wing. “The big question is…how are we going to feed three more billion people on the planet by 2050?”

And while some farmers are experiencing larger harvests, they continue to battle other problems. The cost of growing the rice is “very, very high now. Labor cost is high,” said farmer Rao.

Words in This Story

variety - n. a particular kind of person or thing

pesticide¹ - n. a chemical that is used to kill animals or insects that damage plants or crops

transform - v. to change something completely - and usually in a good way

depletion - n. to use most or all of something important; to greatly reduce the amount of something

irrigate - v. to supply something (such as land) with water by using artificial means (such as pipes)

tractor - n. a large vehicle used to pull farm equipment

biodiversity - n. the existence of many different kinds of plants and animals in an environment

malnourishment - n. lack of proper nutrition

climate change - n. a change in global climate patterns caused by an increase in carbon dioxide resulting from the use of fossil fuels (coal and natural gas)

1 pesticide   

n.杀虫剂，农药

参考例句：

• The pesticide was spread over the vegetable plot.菜田里撒上了农药。
• This pesticide is diluted with water and applied directly to the fields.这种杀虫剂用水稀释后直接施用在田里。

2 pesticides   

n.杀虫剂( pesticide的名词复数 )；除害药物

参考例句：

• vegetables grown without the use of pesticides 未用杀虫剂种植的蔬菜
• There is a lot of concern over the amount of herbicides and pesticides used in farming. 人们对农业上灭草剂和杀虫剂的用量非常担忧。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

4 nutrients   

n.（食品或化学品）营养物，营养品( nutrient的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a lack of essential nutrients 基本营养的缺乏
• Nutrients are absorbed into the bloodstream. 营养素被吸收进血液。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 depletion   

n.耗尽，枯竭

参考例句：

• Increased consumption of water has led to rapid depletion of groundwater reserves.用水量的增加导致了地下水贮备迅速枯竭。
• Farmers should rotate crops every season to prevent depletion of the soil.农夫每季应该要轮耕，以免耗尽土壤。

6 irrigate   

vt.灌溉，修水利，冲洗伤口，使潮湿

参考例句：

• The farmer dug several trenches to irrigate the rice fields.这个农民挖了好几条沟以灌溉稻田。
• They have built canals to irrigate the desert.他们建造成水渠以灌溉沙漠。

7 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

8 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

9 lasting   

adj.永久的，永恒的；vbl.持续，维持

参考例句：

• The lasting war debased the value of the dollar.持久的战争使美元贬值。
• We hope for a lasting settlement of all these troubles.我们希望这些纠纷能获得永久的解决。

10 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

11 dependence   

n.依靠，依赖；信任，信赖；隶属

参考例句：

• 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。

12 resistant   

adj.(to)抵抗的，有抵抗力的

参考例句：

• Many pests are resistant to the insecticide.许多害虫对这种杀虫剂有抵抗力。
• They imposed their government by force on the resistant population.他们以武力把自己的统治强加在持反抗态度的人民头上。

13 promising   

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。

14 genetically   

adv.遗传上

参考例句：

• All the bees in the colony are genetically related. 同一群体的蜜蜂都有亲缘关系。
• Genetically modified foods have already arrived on American dinner tables. 经基因改造加工过的食物已端上了美国人的餐桌。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 基因与食物

15 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。