巧克力或于2050年消失殆尽

2019-08-30

时代英语·高二 2019年4期

Chocolate could soon be a thing of the past， after scientists warned that the cacao plant， from which chocolate is made， could be extinct within 31 years.

Over half of the worlds chocolate comes from just two countries in West Africa—C?te dIvoire and Ghana—where the temperature， rain， and humidity provide the perfect conditions for cacao to thrive.

But the threat of rising temperatures over the next three decades caused by climate change， is expected to result in a loss of moisture from the ground， which scientists say could upset this delicate balance.

According to the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration， a temperature rise of just 2.1 degrees centigrade could spell an end for the chocolate industry worldwide by 2050.

Farmers in the region are already looking at moving cacao production areas thousands of feet uphill into mountainous terrain—much of which is currently preserved for wildlife.

But a move of this scale could destroy ecosystems that are already under threat from illegal farming and deforestation.

Part of the problem， according to Doug Hawkins from London-based research firm Hardman Agribusiness， is that cacao farming methods have not changed for hundreds of years.

“Unlike other tree crops that have benefited from the development of modern， high yielding cultivars and crop management techniques to realise their genetic potential， more than 90% of the global cocoa crop is produced by mallholders on subsistence farms with unimproved planting material，” he told Mail Online.

“All the indicators are that we could be looking at a chocolate deficit of 100，000 tonnes a year in the next few years.”

Now scientists at the University of California at Berkeley have teamed up with American confectionery company Mars， in an attempt to keep chocolate on the menu.

Using the controversial gene-editing technology known as CRISPR they are trying to develop a version of the cacao plant capable of surviving—and thriving—in dryer， warmer climates.

CRISPR has received widespread media attention because of its potential to eradicate human diseases and make so-called “designer babies”.

However， Jennifer Doudna， the UC Berkeley geneticist who invented CRISPR， thinks its most useful effects will be on plants rather than humans.

“Personally， Id love a tomato plant with fruit that stayed on the vine longer，” Doudna， who is an avid gardener， told Business Insider.

If the teams work on the cacao plant is successful， it could remove the need for farmers in West Africa to relocate to higher ground， and perhaps even allow cacao to be grown elsewhere in the world.

科学家发出了警告，制作巧克力所用的可可树或将在31年内灭绝，真是这样的话，巧克力很快就会成为历史了。

仅科特迪瓦和加纳这两个西非国家，就提供了世界上超过半数的巧克力，因为两地的温度、降水及湿度为可可树创造了绝佳的生长环境。

但由于气候变化，气温在未来30年将持续升高，这会导致土壤水分流失——科学家认为，环境中微妙的平衡关系将因此被打破。

美国国家海洋与大气管理局的研究表明，对全球的巧克力行业而言，气温仅上升2.1摄氏度就可能意味着2050年的灭顶之灾。

当地农民已开始考虑将可可产区上迁至数千英尺的山区，那里现今多为野生动植物保护区。

但如此大举搬迁可能会破坏本已受到非法耕作与乱砍滥伐威胁的生态系统。

在道格·霍金斯看来，这个问题在某种程度上要归因于数百年来一成不变的可可种植方式。道格·霍金斯供职于伦敦一家名为“哈德曼农商企业”的调查公司。

他对英国《每日邮报》说：“其他木本作物得益于现代高产栽培和作物管理技术的发展，作物基因潜能得到充分发挥。与它们不同，全球超过90%的可可作物是由自足型农场的小农户用未经改良的种子种植生产的。”

“所有迹象都表明，今后若干年，我们可能面临每年10 万吨的巧克力缺口。”

目前，加利福尼亚大学伯克利分校的科学家已与美国玛氏糖果公司组成科研团队，旨在让巧克力继续留在美食单上。

他们利用备受争议的基因编辑技术，即众所周知的CRISPR，试图研发一种能在更加干燥和温暖的气候条件下存活并生长的可可植物。

CRISPR 目前得到媒體的广泛关注，因为该项技术有望根除人类疾病，并培育出所谓的“定制婴儿”。