關(guān)于超市里的食材，這7個(gè)秘密你大概不知道
Most of us don't spend our days ploughing fields or wrangling cattle. We're part of the 99 percent who eat food, but don't produce it.
我們大多數(shù)人每天的工作都不是務(wù)農(nóng)，我們就是那99%的“只吃、不生產(chǎn)”的人。
Because of our intimate relationship with food, people should be very concerned about how it's produced.
不過，由于我們和食物的關(guān)系如此密切，我們還是應(yīng)該多了解一下它們是怎么被生產(chǎn)出來的。
But we don't always get it right.
但我們知道的通常是錯(cuò)的。
Next time you're at the grocery store, consider these 7 modern myths about the most ancient occupation.
下次你去超市買食材的時(shí)候，請(qǐng)想想這7條關(guān)于這個(gè)古老行業(yè)的傳說吧。
1. Farming is traditional and low tech
錯(cuò)誤1：農(nóng)業(yè)是個(gè)傳統(tǒng)而低科技的產(chǎn)業(yè)
Self-driving cars are still out of reach for consumers, but tractors have been driving themselves around farms for years.
雖然自動(dòng)駕駛的汽車現(xiàn)在還買不到，但農(nóng)場(chǎng)上的拖拉機(jī)已經(jīng)自動(dòng)駕駛了好多年了。
And driving tractors isn't the only role GPS plays on a farm.
而且這還不是GPS在農(nóng)場(chǎng)上的唯一應(yīng)用。
The seeds farmers plant are also carefully crafted by years of state-of-the-art research to maximise yield and efficiency.
農(nóng)民們種的種子，也是用最先進(jìn)的研究成果精心培育了數(shù)年的，這些工序可以最大化它們的產(chǎn)量和效益。
And genetic engineering enables scientists to move genes between species or turn off genes for undesirable characteristics.
而基因工程技術(shù)讓科學(xué)家們能在不同種的植物間交換機(jī)因，還能關(guān)閉那些造成不好性狀的基因。
Organic farms are not necessarily any less high-tech.
有機(jī)農(nóng)場(chǎng)的科技含量也并不會(huì)更低。
2. A pesticide is a pesticide is a pesticide
錯(cuò)誤2：農(nóng)藥就是農(nóng)藥
Pesticide is a generic term for a range of compounds.
農(nóng)藥是對(duì)一系列化合物的總稱。
Different classes target certain types of pests: herbicides for weeds, fungicides for fungi, insecticides for insects, rodenticides for rodents.
不同門類的農(nóng)藥能殺滅不同門類的危害：除草劑除草，殺真菌劑殺真菌，殺蟲劑殺蟲，老鼠藥殺嚙齒類動(dòng)物。
Pesticides fight bugs and weeds in organic and conventional fields.
不管是有機(jī)農(nóng)場(chǎng)還是普通農(nóng)場(chǎng)都會(huì)用農(nóng)藥來對(duì)抗蟲子和雜草。
The difference is that organic pesticides cannot be synthesised artificially.
唯一的不同就是有機(jī)農(nóng)藥不能被人工合成。
3. Organic farmers and conventional farmers don't get along
錯(cuò)誤3：有機(jī)農(nóng)業(yè)的農(nóng)民、普通農(nóng)業(yè)的農(nóng)民，合不來
Adjacent farms have to cooperate regardless of how they grow their crops.
對(duì)于相鄰的兩塊田來說，不管兩邊的人用它種什么，都得與對(duì)方合作。
Poorly managed weeds or insects can also spread from one field to another.
因?yàn)殡s草和昆蟲這些問題如果處理不好就會(huì)在田地之間傳播。
But many farm families actually grow organic and conventional crops on different fields.
不過，其實(shí)很多農(nóng)戶都同時(shí)用不同的地塊來種植有機(jī)作物和普通作物。
Organic and conventional agriculture are different business models.
有機(jī)農(nóng)業(yè)和普通農(nóng)業(yè)只是不同的商業(yè)模式罷了。
4. A GMO is a GMO is a GMO
錯(cuò)誤4：轉(zhuǎn)基因就是轉(zhuǎn)基因
Farmers and plant scientists find the term 'GMO', or genetically modified organism, frustrating.
農(nóng)民和植物學(xué)家讀覺得“轉(zhuǎn)基因”這個(gè)詞特別麻煩。（因?yàn)榭傆腥朔磳?duì)）
There are many ways to genetically modify a crop inside and outside of a lab.
不管是在實(shí)驗(yàn)室里還是實(shí)驗(yàn)室外，都有很多辦法來給一個(gè)作物做轉(zhuǎn)基因。
The technique has produced virus-resistant papayas, grains that can survive herbicide application, squash unpalatable to insects, and apples that don't brown.
這種技術(shù)已經(jīng)創(chuàng)造了抗病毒的木瓜、不怕除草劑的谷物、蟲子吃不了的南瓜，以及不會(huì)變黑的蘋果。
5. Only meat with a "hormone-free" label is hormone-free
錯(cuò)誤5：只有標(biāo)了“無激素”的肉才是無激素的
No meat is hormone-free, because animals (and plants) naturally produce hormones.
世界上沒有肉是無激素的，因?yàn)閯?dòng)物和植物（還有人）天生就會(huì)產(chǎn)生各種激素。
Hormones like oestrogen can be used to help cows reach market weight more quickly, but the average man produces tens of thousands of times more oestrogen every day than the amount found in a serving of beef from a hormone-treated cow.
像雌激素這樣的激素能讓牛更快地達(dá)到上架需要的重量，但一個(gè)普通的男人自己每天產(chǎn)生的雌激素就比一塊牛排里含有的要高出上萬(wàn)倍（對(duì)，男人也產(chǎn)生雌激素）。
6. Only meat with an "antibiotic-free" label is antibiotic-free
錯(cuò)誤6：只有寫了“無抗生素”的肉才是無抗生素的
All the meat in your grocery store is antibiotic-free.
事實(shí)上所有的肉都是無抗生素的。
An animal treated with antibiotics cannot be slaughtered until the drugs have cleared its system.
一只還在服用抗生素的動(dòng)物是不允許被宰殺的，只有等抗生素從它體內(nèi)清干凈了才能殺。
7. Foods labelled "natural" are produced differently
錯(cuò)誤7：那些標(biāo)有“純天然”的食物，生產(chǎn)方式不太一樣
Natural food labels don't actually mean anything.
“純天然食品”這個(gè)標(biāo)識(shí)其實(shí)沒有任何意義。
Not yet, anyway.
至少現(xiàn)在還沒有。
Where to draw the line between natural and unnatural is a tough call, and many experts argue it's irrelevant, because naturalness is not an indication of quality or safety.
天然和非天然之間的界限很難劃分，而且很多專家都認(rèn)為這個(gè)說法沒啥意義，因?yàn)椤疤烊弧边@個(gè)概念并不代表高質(zhì)量和安全。
Most of us don't spend our days ploughing fields or wrangling cattle. We're part of the 99 percent who eat food, but don't produce it.
我們大多數(shù)人每天的工作都不是務(wù)農(nóng)，我們就是那99%的“只吃、不生產(chǎn)”的人。
Because of our intimate relationship with food, people should be very concerned about how it's produced.
不過，由于我們和食物的關(guān)系如此密切，我們還是應(yīng)該多了解一下它們是怎么被生產(chǎn)出來的。
But we don't always get it right.
但我們知道的通常是錯(cuò)的。
Next time you're at the grocery store, consider these 7 modern myths about the most ancient occupation.
下次你去超市買食材的時(shí)候，請(qǐng)想想這7條關(guān)于這個(gè)古老行業(yè)的傳說吧。
1. Farming is traditional and low tech
錯(cuò)誤1：農(nóng)業(yè)是個(gè)傳統(tǒng)而低科技的產(chǎn)業(yè)
Self-driving cars are still out of reach for consumers, but tractors have been driving themselves around farms for years.
雖然自動(dòng)駕駛的汽車現(xiàn)在還買不到，但農(nóng)場(chǎng)上的拖拉機(jī)已經(jīng)自動(dòng)駕駛了好多年了。
And driving tractors isn't the only role GPS plays on a farm.
而且這還不是GPS在農(nóng)場(chǎng)上的唯一應(yīng)用。
The seeds farmers plant are also carefully crafted by years of state-of-the-art research to maximise yield and efficiency.
農(nóng)民們種的種子，也是用最先進(jìn)的研究成果精心培育了數(shù)年的，這些工序可以最大化它們的產(chǎn)量和效益。
And genetic engineering enables scientists to move genes between species or turn off genes for undesirable characteristics.
而基因工程技術(shù)讓科學(xué)家們能在不同種的植物間交換機(jī)因，還能關(guān)閉那些造成不好性狀的基因。
Organic farms are not necessarily any less high-tech.
有機(jī)農(nóng)場(chǎng)的科技含量也并不會(huì)更低。
2. A pesticide is a pesticide is a pesticide
錯(cuò)誤2：農(nóng)藥就是農(nóng)藥
Pesticide is a generic term for a range of compounds.
農(nóng)藥是對(duì)一系列化合物的總稱。
Different classes target certain types of pests: herbicides for weeds, fungicides for fungi, insecticides for insects, rodenticides for rodents.
不同門類的農(nóng)藥能殺滅不同門類的危害：除草劑除草，殺真菌劑殺真菌，殺蟲劑殺蟲，老鼠藥殺嚙齒類動(dòng)物。
Pesticides fight bugs and weeds in organic and conventional fields.
不管是有機(jī)農(nóng)場(chǎng)還是普通農(nóng)場(chǎng)都會(huì)用農(nóng)藥來對(duì)抗蟲子和雜草。
The difference is that organic pesticides cannot be synthesised artificially.
唯一的不同就是有機(jī)農(nóng)藥不能被人工合成。
3. Organic farmers and conventional farmers don't get along
錯(cuò)誤3：有機(jī)農(nóng)業(yè)的農(nóng)民、普通農(nóng)業(yè)的農(nóng)民，合不來
Adjacent farms have to cooperate regardless of how they grow their crops.
對(duì)于相鄰的兩塊田來說，不管兩邊的人用它種什么，都得與對(duì)方合作。
Poorly managed weeds or insects can also spread from one field to another.
因?yàn)殡s草和昆蟲這些問題如果處理不好就會(huì)在田地之間傳播。
But many farm families actually grow organic and conventional crops on different fields.
不過，其實(shí)很多農(nóng)戶都同時(shí)用不同的地塊來種植有機(jī)作物和普通作物。
Organic and conventional agriculture are different business models.
有機(jī)農(nóng)業(yè)和普通農(nóng)業(yè)只是不同的商業(yè)模式罷了。
4. A GMO is a GMO is a GMO
錯(cuò)誤4：轉(zhuǎn)基因就是轉(zhuǎn)基因
Farmers and plant scientists find the term 'GMO', or genetically modified organism, frustrating.
農(nóng)民和植物學(xué)家讀覺得“轉(zhuǎn)基因”這個(gè)詞特別麻煩。（因?yàn)榭傆腥朔磳?duì)）
There are many ways to genetically modify a crop inside and outside of a lab.
不管是在實(shí)驗(yàn)室里還是實(shí)驗(yàn)室外，都有很多辦法來給一個(gè)作物做轉(zhuǎn)基因。
The technique has produced virus-resistant papayas, grains that can survive herbicide application, squash unpalatable to insects, and apples that don't brown.
這種技術(shù)已經(jīng)創(chuàng)造了抗病毒的木瓜、不怕除草劑的谷物、蟲子吃不了的南瓜，以及不會(huì)變黑的蘋果。
5. Only meat with a "hormone-free" label is hormone-free
錯(cuò)誤5：只有標(biāo)了“無激素”的肉才是無激素的
No meat is hormone-free, because animals (and plants) naturally produce hormones.
世界上沒有肉是無激素的，因?yàn)閯?dòng)物和植物（還有人）天生就會(huì)產(chǎn)生各種激素。
Hormones like oestrogen can be used to help cows reach market weight more quickly, but the average man produces tens of thousands of times more oestrogen every day than the amount found in a serving of beef from a hormone-treated cow.
像雌激素這樣的激素能讓牛更快地達(dá)到上架需要的重量，但一個(gè)普通的男人自己每天產(chǎn)生的雌激素就比一塊牛排里含有的要高出上萬(wàn)倍（對(duì)，男人也產(chǎn)生雌激素）。
6. Only meat with an "antibiotic-free" label is antibiotic-free
錯(cuò)誤6：只有寫了“無抗生素”的肉才是無抗生素的
All the meat in your grocery store is antibiotic-free.
事實(shí)上所有的肉都是無抗生素的。
An animal treated with antibiotics cannot be slaughtered until the drugs have cleared its system.
一只還在服用抗生素的動(dòng)物是不允許被宰殺的，只有等抗生素從它體內(nèi)清干凈了才能殺。
7. Foods labelled "natural" are produced differently
錯(cuò)誤7：那些標(biāo)有“純天然”的食物，生產(chǎn)方式不太一樣
Natural food labels don't actually mean anything.
“純天然食品”這個(gè)標(biāo)識(shí)其實(shí)沒有任何意義。
Not yet, anyway.
至少現(xiàn)在還沒有。
Where to draw the line between natural and unnatural is a tough call, and many experts argue it's irrelevant, because naturalness is not an indication of quality or safety.
天然和非天然之間的界限很難劃分，而且很多專家都認(rèn)為這個(gè)說法沒啥意義，因?yàn)椤疤烊弧边@個(gè)概念并不代表高質(zhì)量和安全。
