Birke Baehr: What's wrong with our food system

翻译人员: Angelia King 校对人员: Cen Zeng

Hello. My name is Birke Baehr,

大家好。我叫Birke Baehr伯克·巴尔，

and I'm 11 years old.

11岁。

I came here today to talk about what's wrong with our food system.

我要讲的是我们食物体系的问题。

First of all, I would like to say

首先，我想说

that I'm really amazed at how easily kids are led to believe

我非常惊奇孩子们是多么容易就轻信

all the marketing and advertising

所有

on TV, at public schools

在电视上，在公立学校

and pretty much everywhere else you look.

甚至随处可见的营销宣传和广告。

It seems to me like corporations

我觉得公司总是

are always trying to get kids, like me,

试着让像我一样的孩子

to get their parents to buy stuff

要父母去买那些

that really isn't good for us or the planet.

对我们和对地球环境都不好的东西。

Little kids, especially,

小孩子尤其

are attracted by colorful packaging

喜欢彩色包装

and plastic toys.

和塑料玩具。

I must admit, I used to be one of them.

我必须承认，我曾是他们中的一员。

I also used to think that all of our food

我也曾以为我们所有的食物

came from these happy, little farms

来自于开心小农场，

where pigs rolled in mud and cows grazed on grass all day.

那里整天有在泥浆里打滚的猪和遍地吃草的牛。

What I discovered was this is not true.

但我发现这不是真的。

I began to look into this stuff

我开始在

on the Internet, in books and in documentary films,

互联网，书本，纪录片，

in my travels with my family.

和与我家人的旅行中查找素材。

I discovered the dark side of the industrialized food system.

我发现了工业化食品体系的阴暗面。

First, there's genetically engineered seeds and organisms.

首先谈谈转基因种子和转基因生物。

That is when a seed is manipulated in a laboratory

这是指在实验室改造种子，

to do something not intended by nature --

进行培植，而不是用自然的方式种植--

like taking the DNA of a fish

就好比提取鱼类的DNA，

and putting it into the DNA of a tomato. Yuck.

把它植入到西红柿的DNA中--恶心。

Don't get me wrong, I like fish and tomatoes,

不要误解我，我喜欢鱼和西红柿，

but this is just creepy.

但这个只能令人毛骨悚然。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

The seeds are then planted, then grown.

然后这些种子被种植，生长。

The food they produce have been proven

转基因的食物被证明

to cause cancer and other problems in lab animals,

若是用于实验动物会引发癌症和其它问题。

and people have been eating food produced this way

自从1990年代起，人们一直在吃

since the 1990s.

这些转基因的食物。

And most folks don't even know they exist.

多数人甚至不知道它们的存在。

Did you know rats that ate genetically engineered corn

你知道吗？老鼠吃了转基因谷物

had developed signs of liver and kidney toxicity?

会有肝和肾毒性作用的发生。

These include kidney inflammation and lesions and increased kidney weight.

这包括肾炎、损伤和重量增加。

Yet almost all the corn we eat

然而我们吃过的几乎所有谷物

has been altered genetically in some way.

都是某种程度的转基因作物。

And let me tell you,

我要告诉你的是，

corn is in everything.

任何食物里都有谷物的痕迹。

And don't even get me started on the Confined Animal Feeding Operations

更不用说集中动物饲养操作了——

called CAFOS.

简称CAFOS（美国集中畜牧经营）。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

Conventional farmers use chemical fertilizers

传统农民使用化石燃料制成的化肥，

made from fossil fuels

这些肥料

that they mix with the dirt to make plants grow.

和泥土混合，促进植物生长。

They do this because they've stripped the soil from all nutrients

农民施肥是因为他们年复一年种植同样的作物，

from growing the same crop over and over again.

已经穷竭了土壤的所有养分。

Next, more harmful chemicals are sprayed on fruits and vegetables,

接下来，他们喷洒更多化学物到水果蔬菜上，

like pesticides and herbicides,

比如杀虫剂和除草剂，

to kill weeds and bugs.

来杀死杂草和虫子。

When it rains, these chemicals seep into the ground,

当下雨的时候，这些化学物渗入土地，

or run off into our waterways,

或流到我们水路，

poisoning our water too.

也污染我们的水域。

Then they irradiate our food, trying to make it last longer,

接着他们用辐射处理我们的食物，使其更保鲜，

so it can travel thousands of miles

为了食物可运输千里

from where it's grown to the supermarkets.

从产地运到超市货架。

So I ask myself,

所以我自问，

how can I change? How can I change these things?

我能如何改变这些情况？

This is what I found out.

这是我发现的办法：

I discovered that there's a movement for a better way.

我了解到了一个朝好的方向改变的方法。

Now a while back,

前一阵，

I wanted to be an NFL football player.

我想成为一个美式橄榄球运动员。

I decided that I'd rather be an organic farmer instead.

但我决定我更愿意成为一个有机农业家。

(Applause)

（鼓掌）

Thank you.

谢谢。

And that way I can have a greater impact on the world.

那样的话我可以更多地改变世界。

This man, Joel Salatin, they call him a lunatic farmer

这个人，乔伊·萨拉廷，被称为疯狂的农民，

because he grows against the system.

因为他的种植方法违反整个农业体系。

Since I'm home-schooled,

因为我是在家受教育，

I went to go hear him speak one day.

有一天我去听他讲话。

This man, this "lunatic farmer,"

这个人，这个疯狂的农民

doesn't use any pesticides, herbicides,

不使用任何杀虫剂，除草剂，

or genetically modified seeds.

或者转基因种子。

And so for that, he's called crazy by the system.

因此从体系的角度看，他很疯狂。

I want you to know that we can all make a difference

我想让大家知道我们大家都可以有所作为

by making different choices,

通过不同的选择，

by buying our food directly from local farmers,

向当地农民

or our neighbors who we know in real life.

或者从我们熟知的邻居那儿直接购买食物。

Some people say organic or local food is more expensive,

有人会说有机或者当地食物比较贵，

but is it really?

但事实是否如此呢？

With all these things I've been learning about the food system,

根据我所学到的关于食物体系的这些知识，

it seems to me that we can either pay the farmer,

我知道要么我们付钱给农民，

or we can pay the hospital.

要么付给医院。

(Applause)

（鼓掌）

Now I know definitely which one I would choose.

现在我已经知道怎么选择了。

I want you to know that there are farms out there --

我想让大家知道还是有那样的农场--

like Bill Keener in Sequatchie Cove Farm in Tennessee --

比如田纳西州，比尔·科恩尔的塞曲驰湾农场--

whose cows do eat grass

那里牛儿吃草，

and whose pigs do roll in the mud, just like I thought.

猪泥地打滚，就如同我所想象的那样。

Sometimes I go to Bill's farm and volunteer,

有时我会去比尔的农场做义工，

so I can see up close and personal

所以我可以近距离亲自看到

where the meat I eat comes from.

我吃的肉来自于哪里。

I want you to know that I believe

我想让大家知道我认为

kids will eat fresh vegetables and good food

孩子们如果对食物了解更多，知道它们来自于哪里，

if they know more about it and where it really comes from.

他们就会愿意吃新鲜蔬菜和健康食物。

I want you to know that there are farmers' markets

我希望大家知道在每个社区

in every community popping up.

都在涌现农夫市场。

I want you to know that me, my brother and sister

我想让大家知道我，我哥哥和我姐姐

actually like eating baked kale chips.

真的喜欢吃烤羽衣甘蓝片。

I try to share this everywhere I go.

无论我到哪里，都会向大家分享我的想法。

Not too long ago,

不久以前，

my uncle said that he offered my six-year-old cousin cereal.

我叔叔说他给我六岁堂弟吃麦片时，

He asked him if he wanted organic Toasted O's

他问他是想要Toasted O's有机麦片

or the sugarcoated flakes --

还是糖衣玉米片--

you know, the one with the big striped cartoon character on the front.

大家晓得的，在包装正面有一个大幅带条纹卡通人物的那种。

My little cousin told his dad

我小堂弟告诉他爸爸

that he would rather have the organic Toasted O's cereal

他比较想要Toasted O's的有机燕麦片，

because Birke said he shouldn't eat sparkly cereal.

因为伯克说过，他不应该吃那些闪闪发光的燕麦片。

And that, my friends, is how we can make a difference

我的朋友们，这就是我们可以逐个劝说孩子们

one kid at a time.

让他们作出的改变。

So next time you're at the grocery store, think local,

所以下一次你在商店购物时，请为本地农业着想，

choose organic, know your farmer and know your food.

选择有机食物，认识你的农夫，更好地了解你的食物。

Thank you.

谢谢。

(Applause)

（鼓掌）