美国农民欢迎与古巴恢复外交关系

AS IT IS 2015-07-23 US Farmers Welcome Diplomatic Relations with Cuba 美国农民欢迎与古巴恢复外交关系

Now that the United States and Cuba have re-established relations, American farmers are exploring ways to sell their crops to the island nation.

Wendell Shauman operates a farm in the U.S. state of Illinois. Corn and soybeans from his farm soon may be sold in Cuba.

Mr. Shauman spoke¹ to VOA as he moved some of his corn crop from a grain storage building to a truck. The Illinois farmer hopes more of his crops will be going to Cuba. He says the re-establishment of relations is good for American agriculture. He says American farmers should be successful in Cuba because the island is close to the United States, making transportation costs low. He also says U.S. farmers are producing the crops Cubans need.

Cuba now imports about 80 percent of its food, paying about $2 billion a year. Some of that food comes from the United States. American farmers have been selling crops to Cuba since 2000, when trade restrictions² were eased. Last year, they sold about 25,000 tons of chicken to Cuba.

But the U.S. share of the Cuban market has dropped recently because of increased competition from other countries. In those areas, farmers are not legally barred from extending credit to Cuba.

That is why Wendell Shaumann wants the U.S. to lift its ban on trade with Cuba, and soon. He says U.S. farmers are facing competition in Cuba from South American countries, Ukraine and even India. He says it makes sense to sell crops in a market that is so close to the United States.

But not everyone wants to increase trade with Cuba. Roger Noriega is a former U.S. ambassador to the Organization of American States. He says the possible economic gains from freer trade with Cuba are not as great as some believe. Mr. Noriega says companies want to do business with trustworthy people. In his words, “you can’t trust a dictatorship.”

Much of the corn and soybeans that Mr. Shauman grows are taken by truck to a grain processing center next to the Mississippi River. The crops are then placed on river barges⁴, which bring the crops to New Orleans, Louisiana. From there, they are shipped around the world.

Gary LaGrange is the president of the Port of New Orleans. He says an end to the trade ban with Cuba would increase business at the port and create more jobs there, especially in transportation. He says there would be an increase in the number of ships sailing between Cuba and New Orleans.

Mr. LaGrange says there has already been an increase in business at the port because of a law signed in 2000. It is called the Trade Sanction Reform and Export Enhancement Act. The measure permitted sales of some agricultural products, medicines and medical devices in Cuba.

Mr. LaGrange notes that as a result of that law, the port has been shipping⁵ goods to Cuba. He believes the cancellation⁶ of the trade sanctions will result in an increase in business of 10 to 15 percent. He says exports from the U.S. to Cuba will increase, but so will imports to the U.S. from Cuba. He adds that before the sanctions were put in place, Cuba’s largest trading partner was the port of New Orleans.

Mr. Noriega, the former OAS ambassador, says he opposes the end of the sanctions on Cuba for both moral and economic reasons. He says he does not believe the United States should trade with Cuba because the island continues operating under a communist dictatorship. He says the Cuban government will use profits from trade to continue to suppress its people. He says that is not something Western nations should support.

But farmer Wendell Shauman says old Cold War tensions between the East and West have ended. He says U.S. farmers just want to sell their crops to Cuba. He says farmers should let political leaders worry about the politics.

Agriculture experts say an end to the sanctions could increase U.S. exports to Cuba by as much as 200 percent within the next four years.

Words in This Story

barge³ – n. a boat that is used to carry goods on rivers and in canals

sanctions – n. actions taken to try to force a country to obey international law by limiting trade with that country or by not permitting economic aid; trade restrictions or actions

1 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

2 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

3 barge   

n.平底载货船，驳船

参考例句：

• The barge was loaded up with coal.那艘驳船装上了煤。
• Carrying goods by train costs nearly three times more than carrying them by barge.通过铁路运货的成本比驳船运货成本高出近3倍。

4 barges   

驳船( barge的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The tug is towing three barges. 那只拖船正拖着三只驳船。
• There were plenty of barges dropping down with the tide. 有不少驳船顺流而下。

5 shipping   

n.船运（发货，运输，乘船）

参考例句：

• We struck a bargain with an American shipping firm.我们和一家美国船运公司谈成了一笔生意。
• There's a shipping charge of ￡5 added to the price.价格之外另加五英镑运输费。

6 cancellation   

n.删除，取消

参考例句：

• Heavy seas can cause cancellation of ferry services.海上风浪太大，可能须要取消渡轮服务。
• Her cancellation of her trip to Paris upset our plan.她取消了巴黎之行打乱了我们的计划。