文章大意:这是一篇议论文。文章作者是美国青年农会的联合创始人以及一位家庭农场主,在文章中介绍了美国的小农场主所持有的优势,同时也分析了目前美国农业发展所面临的问题,以及提出的相应的解决办法。
If you want to disturb the car industry, you’d better have a few billion dollars: Mom-and-pop carmakers are unlikely to beat the biggest car companies. But in agriculture, small farmers can get the best of the major players. By connecting directly with customers, and by responding quickly to changes in the markets as well as in the ecosystems, small farmers can keep one step ahead of the big guys. As the co-founder of the National Young Farmers Coalition (NYFC, 美国青年农会) and a family farmer myself, I have a front-row seat to the innovations among small farmers that are transforming the industry.
For example, the Quick Cut Greens Harvester is a tool developed just a couple of years ago by a young farmer, Jonathan Dysinger, in Tennessee, with a small loan from a local Slow Money group. It enables small-scale farmers to harvest 175 pounds of green vegetables per hour — a huge improvement over harvesting just a few dozen pounds by hand — suddenly making it possible for the little guys to compete with large farms of California. Before the tool came out, small farmers couldn’t touch the price per pound offered by California farms. But now, with the combination of a better price and a generally fresher product, they can stay in business.
The sustainable success of small farmers, though, won’t happen without fundamental changes to the industry. One crucial factor is secure access to land. Competition from investors, developers, and established large farmers makes owning one’s own land unattainable for many new farmers. From 2004 to 2013, agricultural land values doubled, and they continue to rise in many regions. Another challenge for more than a million of the most qualified farm workers and managers is a non-existent path to citizenship — the great barrier to building a farm of their own.
There are solutions that could light a path toward a more sustainable and fair farm economy, but farmers can’t awkwardly put them together before us. We at the NYFC need broad support as we urge Congress to increase farmland conservation, as we push for immigration reform, and as we seek policies that will ensure the success of a diverse and ambitious next generation of farmer from all backgrounds. With a new farm bill to be debated in Congress, consumers must take a stand with young farmers.
12. Why does the author mention car industry at the beginning of the passage?
A.To introduce the progress made in car industry. |
B.To introduce a special feature of agriculture. |
C.To introduce a trend of development in agriculture. |
D.To introduce the importance of investing in car industry. |
13. What does the author want to illustrate with the example in paragraph 2?
A.Loans to small local farmers are necessary. |
B.Technology is vital for agricultural development. |
C.Competition between small and big farm is fierce. |
D.Small farmers may gain some advantages over big ones. |
14. What is the difficulty for those new farmers?
A.To gain more financial aid. | B.To hire good farm managers. |
C.To have farms of their own. | D.To win old farmers’ support. |
15. What should farmers do for a more sustainable and fair farm economy?
A.Seek support beyond NYFC. | B.Expand farmland conservation. |
C.Become members of NYFC. | D.Invest more to improve technology. |