On a recent sunny day, 13,000 chickens roam over Larry Brown’s 40 windswept acres in Shiner, Texas. Some rest in the shade of a parked car. Others drink water with the cows. This all seems random, but it’s by design, part of what the $6.1 billion U.S. egg industry bets will be its next big thing: climate-friendly eggs.
These eggs, which are making their debut now on shelves for as much as $8 a dozen, are still labeled organic and animal-friendly, but they’re also from birds that live on farms using regenerative agriculture—special techniques to cultivate rich soils that can trap greenhouse gases. Such eggs could be marketed as helping to fight climate change.
“I’m excited about our progress,” says Brown, who harvests eggs for Denver-based NestFresh Eggs and is adding more cover crops that draw worms and crickets for the chickens to eat. The birds’ waste then fertilizes fields. Such improvements “allow our hens to forage for higher-quality natural feed that will be good for the land, the hens, and the eggs that we supply to our customers.”
The egg industry’s push is the first major test of whether animal products from regenerative farms can become the next premium offering. In barely more than a decade, organic eggs went from being dismissed as a niche product in natural foods stores to being sold at Walmart. More recently there were similar doubts about probiotics and plant-based meats, but both have exploded into major supermarket categories. If the sustainable-egg rollout is successful, it could open the floodgates for regenerative beef, broccoli, and beyond.
Regenerative products could be a hard sell, because the concept is tough to define quickly, says Julie Stanton, associate professor of agricultural economics at Pennsylvania State University Brandywine. Such farming also brings minimal, if any, improvement to the food products (though some producers say their eggs have more protein).
The industry is betting that the same consumers paying more for premium attributes such as free-range, non-GMO, and pasture-raised eggs will embrace sustainability. Surveys show that younger generations are more concerned about climate change, and some of the success of plant-based meat can be chalked up to shoppers wanting to signal their desire to protect the environment. Young adults “really care about the planet,” says John Brunnquell, president of Egg Innovations. “They are absolutely altering the food chain beyond what I think even they understand what they’re doing.”
1. The climate-friendly eggs are produced ________.
2. Larry Brown is excited about his progress in ________.
3. The example of organic eggs is used in Paragraph 4 to suggest ________.
4. It can be learned from the last paragraph that young people ________.
5. John Brunnquell would disagree with Julie Stanton over regenerative product’s ________.
问题1选项
A.at a considerably low cost
B.at the demand of regular shoppers
C.as a replacement for organic eggs
D.on specially designed farms
问题2选项
A.reducing the damage of climate change
B.accelerating the disposal of waste
C.creating a sustainable system
D.attracting customers to his products
问题3选项
A.the doubts over natural feeds
B.the setbacks in the eggs industry
C.the potential of regenerative products
D.the promotional success of super markets
问题4选项
A.are reluctant to change their diet
B.are likely to buy climate-friendly eggs
C.are curious about new foods
D.are amazed at agruculoure advances
问题5选项
A.markets prospects
B.standard definition
C.nutritional value
D.moral implications
第1题:D
第2题:C
第3题:C
第4题:B
第5题:A
第1题:
【选项释义】
The climate-friendly eggs are produced ________. 这种气候友好型鸡蛋是________生产的。
A. at a considerably low cost A. 以相当低的成本
B. at the demand of regular shoppers B. 应普通购物者的要求
C. as a replacement for organic eggs C. 作为有机鸡蛋的替代品
D. on specially designed farms D. 在专门设计的农场里
【答案】D
【考查点】推理判断题。
【解题思路】根据题干关键词climate-friendly eggs可以定位到文章第一段最后一句“这看起来随意，但其实是设计好的，是下一个大事件：气候友好型鸡蛋（climate-friendly eggs）的一部分”，This指代的是上文中描述的养鸡农场的景象，说明气候友好型鸡蛋是在专门设计的农场中生产的。因此D选项“在专门设计的农场里”正确。
【干扰项排除】
A选项“以相当低的成本”，B选项“应普通购物者的要求”和C选项“作为有机鸡蛋的替代品”在文中均没有提及，属于无中生有。
第2题:
【选项释义】
Larry Brown is excited about his progress in ________. 拉里•布朗对他在________取得的进展感到兴奋。
A. reducing the damage of climate change A. 减少气候变化的危害
B. accelerating the disposal of waste B. 加快废物的处理
C. creating a sustainable system C. 创造一个可持续的系统
D. attracting customers to his products D. 吸引顾客购买他的产品
【答案】C
【考查点】推理判断题。
【解题思路】根据题干关键词Larry Brown is excited可以定位到文章第三段第一句“增加更多的覆盖作物，吸引蠕虫和蟋蟀给鸡吃（for the chickens to eat）”，再结合第二句“然后鸡的排泄物可以给田地施肥（fertilizes fields）”和第三句“这样的改进使我们的母鸡能够找到更高质量的天然食物（higher-quality natural feed）”可知，布朗的做法可以创造一个可持续的系统。因此C选项“创造一个可持续的系统”正确。
【干扰项排除】
A选项“减少气候变化的危害”，B选项“加快废物的处理”和D选项“吸引顾客购买他的产品”在文中均不能体现，属于无中生有。
第3题:
【选项释义】
The example of organic eggs is used in Paragraph 4 to suggest ________. 第四段用了有机鸡蛋的例子来说明________。
A. the doubts over natural feeds A. 对天然饲料的疑虑
B. the setbacks in the egg industry B. 鸡蛋行业的挫折
C. the potential of regenerative products C. 再生产品的潜力
D. the promotional success of supermarkets D. 超市的促销成功
【答案】C
【考查点】推理判断题。
【解题思路】根据题干关键词organic eggs可以定位到文章第四段第二句“在短短十多年的时间里，有机鸡蛋（organic eggs）从天然食品商店里被视为利基产品而被忽视，到沃尔玛开始销售”，这个例子是对上一句“来自再生农场的动物产品能否成为下一个优质产品（the next premium offering）”的说明，是否能成为下一个优质产品就意为着再生产品的潜力。因此C选项“再生产品的潜力”正确。
【干扰项排除】
A选项“对天然饲料的疑虑”，B选项“鸡蛋行业的挫折”和D选项“超市的促销成功”在文中均没有提及，属于无中生有。
第4题:
【选项释义】
It can be learned from the last paragraph that young people ________. 从最后一段可以得知，年轻人________。
A. are reluctant to change their diet A. 不愿意改变自己的饮食习惯
B. are likely to buy climate-friendly eggs B. 有可能购买气候友好型鸡蛋
C. are curious about new food C. 对新食品感到好奇
D. are amazed at agriculture advances D. 对农业的进步感到惊奇
【答案】B
【考查点】推理判断题。
【解题思路】根据题干关键词young people可以定位到文章最后一段第二句“年轻一代（younger generations）更加关心气候变化”，再结合下文第三句“年轻人真的关心地球（care about the planet）”和第四句“他们绝对在改变食物链（altering the food chain）”可以推断出，年轻人会在食物方面改善气候和地球环境做贡献，也就是购买气候友好型鸡蛋。因此B选项“有可能购买气候友好型鸡蛋”正确。
【干扰项排除】
A选项“不愿意改变自己的饮食习惯”，C选项“对新食品感到好奇”和D选项“对农业的进步感到惊奇”在文中均不能体现，属于无中生有。
第5题:
【选项释义】
John Brunnquell would disagree with Julie Stanton over regenerative product’s ________. 约翰•布伦凯尔将不同意朱莉•斯坦顿关于再生产品的________。
A. market prospects A. 市场前景
B. standard definition B. 标准定义
C. nutritional value C. 营养价值
D. moral implication D. 道德含义
【答案】A
【考查点】推理判断题。
【解题思路】根据题干关键词John Brunnquell可以定位到文章最后一段第三句“约翰•布伦凯尔说：年轻人‘真的很关心地球（care about the planet）’”，说明他认为年轻人有可能会购买气候友好型鸡蛋这类再生产品来保护地球，对再生产品的市场前景是乐观的。再根据题干关键词Julie Stanton可以定位到文章第五段第一句“朱莉•斯坦顿说，再生产品可能很难销售（could be a hard sell），因为这个概念很难很快定义。”，说明她对再生产品的市场前景是悲观的。由此可知两人在再生产品的市场前景方面的观点是有分歧的。因此A选项“市场前景”正确。
【干扰项排除】
B选项“标准定义”，C选项“营养价值”和D选项“道德含义”在文中均不能体现，属于无中生有。
