VOA慢速英语20061121a

AGRICULTURE REPORT - At Thanksgiving, Turkeys Fly Out of StoresBy Jerilyn Watson

Broadcast: Tuesday, November 21, 2006

This is the VOA Special English Agriculture Report.


Flock¹ of turkeys

American turkey producers will raise close to two hundred seventy million of the big birds this year. That is the estimate of the National Turkey Federation², an industry group. Tens of millions will be the traditional star of Thanksgiving holiday meals this Thursday and next month at Christmas.

Americans eat more turkey throughout the year, and more of it in general, than in the past. The federation says people ate an average of seven and one-half kilograms of turkey last year. But they ate three times as much pork, four times as much beef and five times as much chicken.

Lamb was a distant fifth in popularity³ behind turkey.

Turkeys produced more than three thousand million dollars in farm earnings⁴ last year. The five top producing states were Minnesota, North Carolina, Arkansas, Virginia and Missouri. The top five export markets for turkey meat from the United States were Mexico, China, Canada, Russia and Taiwan.

Turkey is sold many ways -- frozen⁵, fresh, whole, cut into parts, ground up like hamburger, thinly sliced, roasted, fried, smoked. People eat it in sandwiches, in soups, in salads, in sausages and more. But at Thanksgiving people generally buy a whole bird -- in some cases, all prepared and ready to serve.

Modern turkeys are designed for industrial production and for a market where white meat is more popular than dark. The federation says a turkey usually has about seventy percent white meat.

Turkey hens lay eighty to one hundred eggs in a season. Producers use artificial insemination to fertilize⁶ the eggs. The turkeys grow quickly. In fourteen weeks, a hen weighs seven kilograms and is ready for market. Males take eighteen weeks to reach fourteen kilograms.

Most turkeys are raised what is known as the conventional way. But some higher-priced birds are raised outdoors, without antibiotic⁷ drugs and with a diet of feed grown without chemicals.

Some small farms raise what are called heritage⁸ turkeys. These native birds are smaller and take longer to grow. But they mate naturally and have more of a balance of dark and white meat. Heritage turkeys have a stronger taste that some people like.

But turkeys are sold by weight, and people often buy big ones for the holidays. So price may be the biggest consideration of all.

And that's the VOA Special English Agriculture Report, written by Jerilyn Watson. You can learn more about Thanksgiving at www.unsv.com. I'm Shep O'Neal.

1 flock   

n.羊群，一群，大量；vi.群集，聚集，成群

参考例句：

• A flock of customers were waiting for the store to open.一群顾客在等候着商店开门。
• A few sheep have been lost from the flock.羊群里少了几只羊。

2 federation   

n.同盟，联邦，联合，联盟，联合会

参考例句：

• It is a federation of 10 regional unions.它是由十个地方工会结合成的联合会。
• Mr.Putin was inaugurated as the President of the Russian Federation.普京正式就任俄罗斯联邦总统。

3 popularity   

n.普及，流行，名望，受欢迎

参考例句：

• The story had an extensive popularity among American readers.这本小说在美国读者中赢得广泛的声望。
• Our product enjoys popularity throughout the world.我们的产品饮誉全球。

4 earnings   

n.工资收人；利润，利益，所得

参考例句：

• That old man lives on the earnings of his daughter.那个老人靠他女儿的收入维持生活。
• Last year there was a 20% decrease in his earnings.去年他的收入减少了20%。

5 frozen   

adj.冻结的，冰冻的

参考例句：

• He was frozen to death on a snowing night.在一个风雪的晚上，他被冻死了。
• The weather is cold and the ground is frozen.天寒地冻。

6 fertilize   

v.使受精，施肥于，使肥沃

参考例句：

• Fertilizer is a substance put on land to fertilize it.肥料是施在地里使之肥沃的物质。
• Reading will fertilize his vocabulary.阅读会丰富他的词汇。

7 antibiotic   

adj.抗菌的；n.抗生素

参考例句：

• The doctor said that I should take some antibiotic.医生说我应该服些用抗生素。
• Antibiotic can be used against infection.抗菌素可以用来防止感染。

8 heritage   

n.传统，遗产，继承物

参考例句：

• The ancient buildings are part of the national heritage.这些古建筑是民族遗产的一部分。
• We Chinese have a great cultural heritage.我们中国人有伟大的文化遗产。