Section C
Directions: Read the following text and choose the most suitable heading from the list A--F for each paragraph. There is one extra heading which you do not need.
A. Learning to be a qualified freegan B. Food from the garbage can be healthy to eat C. Finding something else from the garbage D. Freeganism, a new lifestyle E. The obstacles to this new lifestyle F. Food waste in the US and Britain |
1. ______________
For growing number of people; the food for their dinner is found in the garbage bins outside supermarkets. They are “freegans”--ordinary, middle class people who search through dustbins for eatable food. The freegan movement is most popular in America, especially in New York City. “Freeganism is a reaction to waste,” says activist Adam Weissman, “But it's also a reaction to injustices and exploitation that go into producing goods in the first place.”
2.______________
A 1997 study by the US Department of Agriculture estimated that the US wastes about 43 billion kilograms of food a year, about 27 percent of US production, but the tree figure is as much as 50 percent. “The No. 1 problem is that Americans have lost touch with what food is for,” Professor Jones said. “We have lost touch with the processes that bring it to the table.” In Britain, meanwhile, around 17 million tones of food are buried between layers of dirt in some sites.
3.______________
Freegans claim that it is easy to eat healthily out of garbage, if a few simple rules are followed. Food sold in most of the US and Britain is marked with an “eat by” date. Most is thrown out a day or two before it becomes unfit to eat. In retailing, the general rule is never to have empty shelves. It is always better to have too much than not to have enough. Major shops also constantly receive deliveries throughout the day. So it does not matter if things are thrown away. There will always be more delivered soon.
4. ______________
It's not just food that gets thrown out. “We found flat-screen TVs, working CD players and stereos,” says Adam Weissman. “I have put together most of my wardrobe out of garbage. Last year's designer clothing in perfect shape is thrown away because it's no longer fashionable, so I wear a lot of designer labels.”
5. ______________
If you don't mind wearing last year's fashions and eating food that is not quite new, then freeganism sounds like a good lifestyle. It is certainly an interesting approach to the problem of excess waste. But there is one difficulty. How many people are prepared to spend their evenings looking through trash for things to eat and wear? How many would be prepared to tell their friends about it? And what about the smell?