How important is it to keep us healthy ? A group of young people got together to discuss this question. Here’re parts of their discussion.

PETER: I’d like to stay healthy, but to be honest, I only eat food that tastes good. And if food tastes good, it’s usually bad for you, isn’t it? Cola tastes better than water, for example.

TONY: Well, food that is bad for you can taste good! But I prefer not to eat much food that is fried, like, er, French fries. Do you eat fast food, Laura?

LAURA: Do I eat fast food? Never! I love to eat food that is healthy. I want to take care of my health, so I eat mainly fruit and vegetables. Oh! And I stay away from sugar, you do too, don’t you?

TONY: Hm, yes. And I think most people agree that fruit and vegetables are good for health. But, um, I would say that fast food itself isn’t always bad for you, but too much of it is not good.

LAURA: Actually, did you know that it’s been found in laboratory testing that some types of oil are really bad for us? So I don’t eat anything that’s been cooked in oil. Also, did you know that some foods might cause cancer? Like burnt barbecued meat. I’ve heard eating burnt food like this can increase the risk of cancer.

PETER: Really! But I love to eat well-cooked meat, even if it is a little burnt. It’s delicious, and meat isn’t really dangerous, is it?

LAURA: Oh! Yes, it is! I never eat meat. It’s not good for our health at all. If I were you, I’d eat nuts instead.

TONY: Well, I agree it’s good to eat lots of fruit and vegetables, but I think it’s also fine to eat some meat or fish. People who eat a balanced diet should be healthier than those who only eat biscuits and hamburgers, shouldn’t they? I prefer to only eat food that I like, but isn’t it important to eat food that’s healthy, even if you don’t like it? The main thing is to have a good balance.

Sugar—free beets（甜菜）that still taste sweet, tastier tomatoes and brighter-colored fruits and vegetables that stay ripe（熟的）longer are all foods that are being grown now. How can they
carry traits, such as being tastier, brighter, and riper? They are genetically engineered.
Genetic engineering（基因工程）is like making a change in a recipe. For example, when you make cakes, you mix together all of the usual ingredients. If you add an extra ingredient, like salt, the cakes will taste differently.
Genes are ingredients in the recipe for life. They carry the traits of living things. Your genes dictate what color hair and eyes you’ll have, how tall you’ll be, as well as many other traits. Genes carry traits for plants, too. By adding genes to a plant, you can sometimes create new traits. For example, adding a certain gene to a potato plant can make the potato plant distasteful to bugs（虫子）. This makes some farmers happy because they don’t have to use chemicals to keep bugs away from their plants.
It sounds great, but some people are opposed to the idea of food that is genetically engineered. Ronnie Cummins, from the Campaign for Food Safety, is against it. He says that one of the major concerns is allergies（过敏）. Supermarkets don’t always label foods that are genetically engineered. A customer could unknowingly buy food that has an added gene from another plant that he or she is allergic to. It could be dangerous.
Gary Burton from Monsanto, a seed（种子）company that engineers food, disagrees. He says his company tests for allergies. Burton believes that genetic engineering is a valuable tool for making better food. The technology can help farmers use less insecticide（杀虫剂）and grow healthier crops. Burton thinks there are many advantages.
But Cummins says that we just don’t know what will happen in the future if we keep adding genes to foods. We could mistakenly create a monster.
People have different opinions about genetic engineering. One side supports it and thinks it will only help us. The other side is opposed to playing with nature and fears health risks. Which side do you think is right?
【小题1】What could be a good thing about food that is genetically engineered?

Sugar—free beets（甜菜）that still taste sweet, tastier tomatoes and brighter-colored fruits and vegetables that stay ripe（熟的）longer are all foods that are being grown now. How can they

carry traits, such as being tastier, brighter, and riper? They are genetically engineered.

Genetic engineering（基因工程）is like making a change in a recipe. For example, when you make cakes, you mix together all of the usual ingredients. If you add an extra ingredient, like salt, the cakes will taste differently.

Genes are ingredients in the recipe for life. They carry the traits of living things. Your genes dictate what color hair and eyes you’ll have, how tall you’ll be, as well as many other traits. Genes carry traits for plants, too. By adding genes to a plant, you can sometimes create new traits. For example, adding a certain gene to a potato plant can make the potato plant distasteful to bugs（虫子）. This makes some farmers happy because they don’t have to use chemicals to keep bugs away from their plants.

It sounds great, but some people are opposed to the idea of food that is genetically engineered. Ronnie Cummins, from the Campaign for Food Safety, is against it. He says that one of the major concerns is allergies（过敏）. Supermarkets don’t always label foods that are genetically engineered. A customer could unknowingly buy food that has an added gene from another plant that he or she is allergic to. It could be dangerous.

Gary Burton from Monsanto, a seed（种子）company that engineers food, disagrees. He says his company tests for allergies. Burton believes that genetic engineering is a valuable tool for making better food. The technology can help farmers use less insecticide（杀虫剂）and grow healthier crops. Burton thinks there are many advantages.

But Cummins says that we just don’t know what will happen in the future if we keep adding genes to foods. We could mistakenly create a monster.

People have different opinions about genetic engineering. One side supports it and thinks it will only help us. The other side is opposed to playing with nature and fears health risks. Which side do you think is right?

1.What could be a good thing about food that is genetically engineered?

A．It’s more expensive.

B．It could taste different.

C．It requires less insecticide.

D．It’s not labeled in the supermarket.

2.In general, who does not support the idea of genetic food?

A．People from seed companies.

B．Farmers who use engineered seeds.

C．People from the Campaign for Food Safety.

D．Scientists who create genetically engineered food.

3.It can be inferred that          .

A．growing genetic foods will make farmers richer

B．people will eat more genetic foods in the future

C．using fewer chemicals could make the food tastier

D．there could be unknown dangers about genetic foods

4.What is the best title of this passage?

A．Future Farming

B．Genetic Engineering

C．Foods with a Difference

D．Genetically Engineered Fruits