VOA标准英语2011--Cameroon: Cocoa Growers Profit from Ivor

In recent months, cocoa growers in Cameroon have been happy.Prices for their crop have reached an all-time high of 1,400 FCFA [about US $3] per kilogram. That's about double the high reached three years ago.
Officials at Cameroon's National Cocoa and Coffee Board attribute the price spike¹ partly to the protracted² political impasse³ in the world's top producer, Ivory Coast. The country accounts for 40 percent of global production. It's been plunged⁴ into a quagmire⁵ since November following contested presidential election results.
Cocoa pods
Mr. Gbagbo is under increasingly severe international pressure to cede⁶ power to Mr. Ouattara, widely considered to be the winner. European Union sanctions aimed at forcing Mr. Gbagbo to hand over power are now threatening cocoa shipments from Ivory Coast, which produces a yearly average of 1.3 million tons.
Michael Ndoping, managing director of the Cameroon Cocoa and Coffee Board, says although prices are generally determined⁷ by supply and demand, commodities are rising because of speculation⁸ about the effect of the political crisis on Ivoirian farmers.
"We're mixing two things. We're talking politics, we're talking business. Like you would know, the Ivory Coast is the No. 1 producer of cocoa in the world. So anything that happens in Cote d'Ivoire invariably has an impact on the market. We've noticed since August that prices have been sustained. We think that the crisis in Cote d'Ivoire has an impact. So that could account for the sustainable prices we've noticed for the last six months," Ndoping says.
Experts predict the soaring prices will go through the roof if the standoff degenerates⁹ into warfare¹⁰, impeding¹¹ Ivorian exports. Meantime, producing countries are preparing to take advantage of the situation as anxiety steadily¹² grows among chocolate manufacturers in the West.
Bags of cocoa for export
In Ghana, the world's second largest producer, officials are even pondering ways to reposition the country as the world's leading producer if Ivorian exports are eventually disrupted. Ivory Coast's cocoa production overtook Ghana's in 1978.
In Cameroon, renewed efforts at reviving the sector¹³ have been paying off. Production rose to 205,000 tons in the 2008/09 season and Ndoping says halfway¹⁴ into the current season, prospects¹⁵ are even brighter.
"We launched the season in August. As of today, we've exported 174,000 tons and that to us is a very big jump because last year at this period, we were at 134,000 tons. So there's a difference of almost 40,000 tons and that's a remarkable¹⁶ increase and so we can say the sector is doing very well. By the end of July, we should surpass 200,000 tons," Ndoping explains.
The steadily rising prices are encouraging farmers to revive and expand abandoned plantations¹⁷.
Growth in production of cocoa in Cameroon stalled in the late 1980s as world market prices slumped¹⁸ and high export taxes forced farmers to switch to staple¹⁹ crops like grain.
But since 2005, a combination of efforts has culminated²⁰ in rekindled²¹ interest in cocoa. Export taxes have been scrapped²², and farmers are benefitting from several programs providing high-yielding seedlings²³ for free or at subsidized rates.
The programs have also sponsored access to inputs²⁴ such as fertilizer and pesticides²⁵. This year some five million plants are expected to be distributed, and an additional 4,000 hectares of cocoa plantations will be created.
Cristel Pound, a grower in the country's South Region says the Ivorian situation presents a golden opportunity to improve quality and quantity.
" At the moment, weather conditions are favorable. There is low rainfall, which favors production and ample sunshine, which encourages fermentation and also allows us to dry our beans for longer periods. We've also noticed few cases of blackpod disease. That implies we can improve both our quantity and quality in a very short time. The decision-makers should now play their role," Pound says.
Across Cameroon, farmers like Pound say the country's infrastructure²⁶ is a major drawback to rapid growth in cocoa, and all agricultural production. Poor transport links make it difficult and costly²⁷ for farmers to get their products to market.
But the government says it is gradually building new roads to make production areas more accessible. It also says it's setting up conservation units and processing plants and giving growers groups market information and best farming techniques.
It has also waged war against middlemen accused of not maintaining standards. Some convince cash-strapped farmers to sell them insufficiently-dried and fermented²⁸ cocoa beans, which they then sell to exporters. They're also accused of not giving farmers a fair price for their goods.
The government support package also includes duty exemptions²⁹ on inputs like improved seeds and pesticides.
Many farmers groups have launched calls for the government to quickly disburse³⁰ large subsidies³¹ while the Ivorian deadlock³² lasts. They say the crisis should serve as a motivation for them to increase production.

1 spike   

n.长钉，钉鞋；v.以大钉钉牢，使...失效

参考例句：

• The spike pierced the receipts and held them in order.那个钉子穿过那些收据并使之按顺序排列。
• They'll do anything to spike the guns of the opposition.他们会使出各种手段来挫败对手。

2 protracted   

adj.拖延的；延长的v.拖延“protract”的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• The war was protracted for four years. 战争拖延了四年。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• We won victory through protracted struggle. 经过长期的斗争，我们取得了胜利。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 impasse   

n.僵局；死路

参考例句：

• The government had reached an impasse.政府陷入绝境。
• Negotiations seemed to have reached an impasse.谈判似乎已经陷入僵局。

4 plunged   

v.颠簸( plunge的过去式和过去分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降

参考例句：

• The train derailed and plunged into the river. 火车脱轨栽进了河里。
• She lost her balance and plunged 100 feet to her death. 她没有站稳，从100英尺的高处跌下摔死了。

5 quagmire   

n.沼地

参考例句：

• On their way was a quagmire which was difficult to get over.路上他俩遇到了—个泥坑,很难过得去。
• Rain had turned the grass into a quagmire.大雨使草地变得一片泥泞。

6 cede   

v.割让，放弃

参考例句：

• The debater refused to cede the point to her opponent.辩论者拒绝向她的对手放弃其主张。
• Not because I'm proud.In fact,in front of you I cede all my pride.这不是因为骄傲，事实上我在你面前毫无骄傲可言。

7 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

8 speculation   

n.思索，沉思；猜测；投机

参考例句：

• Her mind is occupied with speculation.她的头脑忙于思考。
• There is widespread speculation that he is going to resign.人们普遍推测他要辞职。

9 degenerates   

衰退，堕落，退化( degenerate的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Liberty often degenerates into lawlessness. 自由常常变质为无法无天。
• Her health degenerates rapidly. 她的健康状况迅速恶化。

10 warfare   

n.战争(状态)；斗争；冲突

参考例句：

• He addressed the audience on the subject of atomic warfare.他向听众演讲有关原子战争的问题。
• Their struggle consists mainly in peasant guerrilla warfare.他们的斗争主要是农民游击战。

11 impeding   

a.(尤指坏事)即将发生的，临近的

参考例句：

• Fallen rock is impeding the progress of rescue workers. 坠落的石头阻滞了救援人员的救援进程。
• Is there sufficient room for the kiosk and kiosk traffic without impeding other user traffic? 该环境下是否有足够的空间来摆放信息亭？信息亭是否会妨碍交通或者行走？ 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

12 steadily   

adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地

参考例句：

• The scope of man's use of natural resources will steadily grow.人类利用自然资源的广度将日益扩大。
• Our educational reform was steadily led onto the correct path.我们的教学改革慢慢上轨道了。

13 sector   

n.部门，部分；防御地段，防区；扇形

参考例句：

• The export sector will aid the economic recovery. 出口产业将促进经济复苏。
• The enemy have attacked the British sector.敌人已进攻英国防区。

14 halfway   

adj.中途的，不彻底的，部分的；adv.半路地，在中途，在半途

参考例句：

• We had got only halfway when it began to get dark.走到半路，天就黑了。
• In study the worst danger is give up halfway.在学习上，最忌讳的是有始无终。

15 prospects   

n.希望，前途(恒为复数)

参考例句：

• There is a mood of pessimism in the company about future job prospects. 公司中有一种对工作前景悲观的情绪。
• They are less sanguine about the company's long-term prospects. 他们对公司的远景不那么乐观。

16 remarkable   

adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的

参考例句：

• She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
• These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。

17 plantations   

n.种植园，大农场( plantation的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Soon great plantations, supported by slave labor, made some families very wealthy. 不久之后出现了依靠奴隶劳动的大庄园，使一些家庭成了富豪。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件
• Winterborne's contract was completed, and the plantations were deserted. 维恩特波恩的合同完成后，那片林地变得荒废了。 来自辞典例句

18 slumped   

大幅度下降，暴跌( slump的过去式和过去分词 )； 沉重或突然地落下[倒下]

参考例句：

• Sales have slumped this year. 今年销售量锐减。
• The driver was slumped exhausted over the wheel. 司机伏在方向盘上，疲惫得睡着了。

19 staple   

n.主要产物，常用品，主要要素，原料，订书钉，钩环；adj.主要的，重要的；vt.分类

参考例句：

• Tea is the staple crop here.本地产品以茶叶为大宗。
• Potatoes are the staple of their diet.土豆是他们的主要食品。

20 culminated   

v.达到极点( culminate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• a gun battle which culminated in the death of two police officers 一场造成两名警察死亡的枪战
• The gala culminated in a firework display. 晚会以大放烟火告终。 来自《简明英汉词典》

21 rekindled   

v.使再燃( rekindle的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• As soon as they met again his dormant love for her was rekindled. 他们一见面，他对她的旧情如乾柴烈火般又重新燃起。 来自辞典例句
• Ive found rekindled my interest in re-reading the books. 我发觉这提起了我再次阅读这些书的兴趣。 来自互联网

22 scrapped   

废弃(scrap的过去式与过去分词)； 打架

参考例句：

• This machine is so old that it will soon have to be scrapped. 这架机器太旧，快报废了。
• It had been thought that passport controls would be scrapped. 人们曾认为会放开护照管制。

23 seedlings   

n.刚出芽的幼苗( seedling的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Ninety-five per cent of the new seedlings have survived. 新栽的树苗95%都已成活。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• In such wet weather we must prevent the seedlings from rotting. 这样的阴雨天要防止烂秧。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

24 inputs   

n.输入( input的名词复数 )；投入；输入端；输入的数据v.把…输入电脑( input的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Uncheck the inputs checked for optimization in the previous stage. 不测试那些已经测试过的优化了的以前步骤的inputs.（变量参数）。 来自互联网
• Just in case, save in a file the inputs obtained at the previous stage. 以防万一，保存以前步骤获得的inputs（变量参数值）到一个文件中去。 来自互联网

25 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》

26 infrastructure   

n.下部构造，下部组织，基础结构，基础设施

参考例句：

• We should step up the development of infrastructure for research.加强科学基础设施建设。
• We should strengthen cultural infrastructure and boost various types of popular culture.加强文化基础设施建设，发展各类群众文化。

27 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。

28 fermented   

v.（使）发酵( ferment的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）激动；骚动；骚扰

参考例句：

• When wine is fermented, it gives off gas. 酒发酵时发出气泡。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• His speeches fermented trouble among the workers. 他的演讲在工人中引起骚动。 来自辞典例句

29 exemptions   

n.（义务等的）免除( exemption的名词复数 )；免（税）；（收入中的）免税额

参考例句：

• The exemptions for interpretive rules, policy statements, and procedural rules have just been discussed. 有关解释性规则、政策说明和程序规则的免责我们刚刚讨论过。 来自英汉非文学 - 行政法
• A: The regulation outlines specific exemptions for some WPM. 答：该规定概述了某些木质包装材料的特定的例外情形。 来自互联网

30 disburse   

v.支出，拨款

参考例句：

• Cashiers receive and disburse money in establishments other than financial institutions.除了金融机构，出纳员也会在一些社会机构里收款付款。
• On approval,we will disburse the fund to your designated bank account directly.一经批核，贷款将于扣除手续费后直接存入您指定的银行账户。

31 subsidies   

n.补贴，津贴，补助金( subsidy的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• European agriculture ministers failed to break the deadlock over farm subsidies. 欧洲各国农业部长在农业补贴问题上未能打破僵局。
• Agricultural subsidies absorb about half the EU's income. 农业补贴占去了欧盟收入的大约一半。 来自《简明英汉词典》

32 deadlock   

n.僵局，僵持

参考例句：

• The negotiations reached a deadlock after two hours.两小时后，谈判陷入了僵局。
• The employers and strikers are at a deadlock over the wage.雇主和罢工者在工资问题上相持不下。