A
Once small farmers in Masii, a remote village in Kenya, have picked their crops, all they can do is wait until a buyer trucks through. The system works fairly well for beans and corn, but mangoes－the area's other main crop－spoil(腐烂) more quickly. If the trader is late, they rot.
Obadiah Kisaingu, a farmer in Masii, estimates 40% of the village's mango crop is lost to spoilage. But a simple coating could change that. A company, SmartTech, has created a product that doubles the shelf life of fresh produce, enabling farmers like Kisaingu to access faroff, larger markets. More time for fresh produce on grocers' shelves also means less food waste－a $2.6 trillion problem, according to the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization(FAO).
James Rogers, CEO of SmartTech, who has a PhD in materials science, wanted to solve the problem for food much in the same way that oxide barriers preventing rust (锈) have achieved for steel. Fortunately, researchers have found when plants made the jump from water to land hundreds of millions of years ago, they developed cutin, a barrier which is made of fatty acids that link together to form a seal around the plant, helping keep water in.
The cutin was such a grand strategy that today you'll still find it across the plant kingdom. Not that it's exactly the same solution across the board: An orange can last longer than a strawberry not so much because of the thickness of its skin, but because of the difference in the arrangement of those cutin molecules(分子)on the surface. SmartTech's challenge was first identifying the key components of cutin. After extensive trials, Rogers and his team developed a natural and tasteless protective coating from plant material－stems, leaves and skins. The product extends the sweet spot between ripening and rot. And best of all, the treated produce doesn't require refrigeration.
SmartTech travelled a long road to get here. It was six years from launch before products applied with the substance were in stores. SmartTechtreated fruits and vegetables are already in large grocery chains in Europe and the U．S. and the company recently gained regulatory approval in several less developed countries in South America.
“SmartTech has huge potential to turn poor farmers in Africa into commercial farmers，” says Rogers. “That means more money in pockets, and more food in stomachs.” But whether the company can costeffectively reach small farmers in faroff areas still remains a challenge.
( A )21．The author mentions the small farmers in Kenya to ________.
A．stress their need for preserving produce
B．show their difficulty in harvesting crops
C．evaluate their loss caused by slow transport
D．help express their wish to reach larger markets
( A )22．What does James Rogers expect?
A．To profit farmers.
B．To earn more money.
C．To produce more food.
D．To expand grocery chains.
( D )23．The main purpose of the passage is to ________．
A．prove a theory
B．promote a product
C．introduce a company
D．present a technology
答案及解析：
【语篇解读】文章介绍了一个公司研发出了一种能使农产品保存得更好，从而为农民谋利的技术。
21．A 推理判断题。由第二段的“Obadiah Kisaingu, a farmer in Masii, estimates 40% of the village's mango crop is lost to spoilage. But a simple coating could change that. A company, SmartTech, has created a product that doubles the shelf life of fresh produce, enabling farmers like Kisaingu to access faroff, larger markets.” 可知，作物易腐烂，作者提到肯尼亚的小农场主是为了强调他们对保存农产品的需要。故选A项。
22．A 推理判断题。由最后一段的“‘SmartTech has huge potential to turn poor farmers in Africa into commercial farmers，’ says Rogers. ‘That means more money in pockets, and more food in stomachs.’” 可知，James Rogers希望为农民谋利。故选A项。
23．D 推理判断题。纵观全文可知，文章主要讲述了一种能使农产品保存得更好、从而为农民谋利的技术。由此推知，这篇文章的主要目的是介绍一项技术。故选D项。
