歐洲乾旱影響小麥產量

Dry weather in parts of Europe is threatening production of key crops like wheat - at a time when the world is already battling high food prices and agricultural problems in other areas.

正當全世界各地面臨高糧價和農業問題之際，歐洲部分地區的乾旱氣候已經威脅到小麥等主要農作物的生長。

Thursday's weather forecast brought some good news for parts of France - rain. But for the rest, it's more of the same - clear skies and sunshine.

星期四下雨的氣象預報爲法國部分地區帶來喜訊。可是法國其它地區依舊是晴空萬里和驕陽高照的天氣。

Outdoor cafes are packed. But the French government is worried. Authorities have announced water restrictions in about a third of the country. This week, Environment Minister Nathalie Kosciusko-Morizet called the situation "critical."

巴黎的露天咖啡座依然擁擠，可是法國政府憂心忡忡。官方已經在全國三分之一地區宣佈限制用水。而這個星期，法國環境部長科西斯科-莫里澤說，目前情勢危急。

Farmers are particularly concerned.

特別感到擔憂的是農民。

Dairy farmer Alain Duchemain told French TV his cows are having a hard time finding enough grass for grazing. Duchemin's hay harvest was a month early - and half the normal yield.

乳業農場主達謝敏告訴法國電視臺，他飼養的乳牛無法找到足夠的草地放牧。乾草飼料的收穫比預定季節早了一個月，產量只有往年的一半。

Poland, Austria, parts of southern Germany and Britain are also experiencing unusually dry weather and high spring temperatures.

波蘭，奧地利，德國南部以及英國也都遭遇了乾旱的氣候，以及氣溫偏高的春季。

Ignacio Perez, cereal analyst for the Paris-based Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, said it's still early in the crop season. And while Europe accounts for one-fifth of the world's wheat production, so far drought has not hit Europe's biggest agricultural heavyweights, Russia and the Ukraine.

巴黎經濟合作發展組織的穀類分析家伊格納西奧·貝利茲說，現在仍是收成季節的早期。雖然歐洲小麥產量佔全世界五分之一，歐洲的旱象還沒有侵襲到重要的糧食產地烏克蘭和俄羅斯。But Perez says the European drought is a concern from a global perspective.

但是貝利茲說，從全球的觀點看來，歐洲旱象足以令人關切。

"The situation is worrying, but it's more worrying due to the fact we are in a period of uncertainty regarding high prices, expectations of high supply response due to an excess of demand for food products in the world," said Perez.

他說，“情勢令人憂心。但更令人擔心的是，由於全世界對糧食的過度需求，我們正處於糧價高漲，供應難以確定的時期。”

Parts of Canada and the United States are experiencing heavy rains and flooding, while droughts are hurting crop production in Western Australia and China. This is happening as global demand for food crops is growing - and prices are rising.

美國和加拿大的部分地區大量降雨造成水患。澳大利亞西部和中國則因爲旱災而導致農作物受損。這些情形也都發生在全球糧食需求上升，糧價上漲之際。

That trend may well continue - especially if global warming is playing a role in these weather patterns- as Perez believes is the case.

目前的情勢可能會持續下去，特別是如果地球升溫繼續影響這些地區的氣候模式的話。而貝利茲相信，情形確實如此。

"If we move more into a worldwide problem in terms of food security and production starts to be more and more important, we're going to have to revise some policies," said Perez.

他說，“如果食品安全越來越成爲全球性的問題，如果糧食生產問題變得越來越重要，我們就必須重訂某些政策。”

European Union countries have been focusing on improving the quality of crop production and farmers' incomes. Now, Perez says, they will have to work on boosting production - and investing in technologies like irrigation to deal with future droughts.

歐盟會員國一向專注於改善農產品的品質和農民的收入。貝利茲說，現在，他們還將致力於產量的增加，投資於水利工程，以預防未來的乾旱氣候。