2022-09-02 Eco-labels for supermarket food 英国超市食品有望被贴上环保标签

新研究成果可能会让此景成为现实：英国超市的购物者很快就能在购买食品前，查看食品对环境造成的影响。科学家已能利用公共数据库估算出成千上万种食品的构成及其对环境的影响。

The researchers estimated the composition of thousands of foods from the ingredients lists on their packaging. They then assessed their effect on the environment – the greater the impact, the higher the score.

研究人员根据食品包装上的成分表估算了成千上万种食品的构成。然后，他们评估了食品对环境造成的影响——影响越大，分数越高。

Fizzy drinks have the least effect, typically scoring 0.23 in the analysis. Ready meals were 3.17, tea was higher at 5.44. But unsurprisingly, the more meat and dairy, the greater the impact. Most foods were dwarfed by lamb and beef, which scored 34.

碳酸饮料对环境的影响最小，在分析报告中的评分通常为0.23。方便速食的分数为3.17，茶类分数更高，为5.44。但不出所料的是，食品中肉类和乳制品含量越高，其对环境的影响就越大。羊肉和牛肉的分数为34，大大高于多数食品。

Crucially though, the researchers found significant variations within the same foods. For example, the score for the worst pork sausages was 30% higher than the best. And the impact of biscuits depended on the amount of chocolate they contained. The worst was 46% higher than a plain biscuit. 

但关键是，研究人员发现同类食物不同商品对环境的影响存在显著的差异。例如，评分最差的猪肉香肠比最好的分数高出30%。饼干对环境的影响取决于饼干中巧克力的含量。评分最差的饼干比普通饼干的分数高出46%。

The researchers found similar trends for pesto sauces and lasagne, suggesting that there’s scope for manufacturers to make a big difference with small changes to their recipes.

研究人员在香蒜酱和意式千层面中发现了类似的趋势，这表明食品制造商有机会通过微调配方带来重大的环保效益。

词汇表

composition 构成，成分
ingredients （食品）成分，原料
assessed 评估了
fizzy drinks 碳酸饮料
ready meals 方便食品，即食食品
dwarfed 相形见绌
significant 显著的
pork sausages 猪肉香肠
pesto sauces 香蒜酱
lasagne 意式千层面
scope （做事的）余地，机会

阅读理解：请在读完上文后，回答下列问题。

1. According to this new research, what did a higher score on food composition mean?

2. Which types of food had the highest score?

3. True or false? The score for sausages depended on their quality.

4. How could food manufacturers change their impact on the environment?

答案

1. According to this new research, what did a higher score on food composition mean?
A higher score meant a bigger impact on the environment.

2. Which types of food had the highest score?
Lamb and beef had the highest score at 34.

3. True or false? The score for sausages depended on their quality.
True. The score for the worst pork sausages was 30% higher than the best.

4. How could food manufacturers change their impact on the environment?
The research suggested there’s scope for manufacturers to make a big difference with small changes to their recipes.