Consumers are being confused and misled by the hodge-podge(大杂烩) of environmental claims made by household products, according to a “green labeling” study published by Consumers International Friday.

Among the report’s more unacceptalbe findings – a German fertilizer described itself as “earthworm friendly”; a brand of flour said it was “non-polluting” and a British toilet paper claimed to be “environmentally friendlier”.

The study was written and researched by Britain’s National Consumer Council (NCC) for lobby group Consumers International. It was funded by the German and Dutch governments and the European Commission.

“While many good and useful claims are being made, it is clear that there is a long way to go in ensuring shoppers are adequately informed about the environmental impacts they buy,” said Consumers International director, Anna Fielder.

The 10-country study surveyed product packaging in Britain, Western Europe, Scandinavia and the United States. It found that products sold in Germany and the United Kingdom made the most environmental claims on average.

The report focused on claims made by specific products, such as detergent (洗涤剂), insect sprays and some garden products. It did not test claims, but compared them to labeling guidelines set by the International Standards Organization (ISO) in September, 1999. Researchers documented claims of environmental friendliness made by about 2,000 products and found many too vague or too misleading to meet ISO standards.

“Many products had specially designed labels to make them seem environmentally friendly, but in fact many of these symbols mean nothing,” said report researcher Philip Page.

“Laundry detergents made the most number of claims with 158. Household cleaners were second with 145 separate claims, while paints were third on our list with 73. The high numbers show how confusing it must be for consumers to sort the true from the misleading,” he said.

The ISO labeling standards ban vague or misleading claims on product packaging, because terms such as “environmentally friendly” and “non-polluting” cannot be verified. “What we are now pushing for is to have multinational corporations meet the standards set by the ISO,” said Page.

1.According to the passage, the NCC found it unacceptable that _______.

A. all the products surveyed claim to meet ISO standards

B. the claims made by products are often unclear and deceiving

C. consumers would believe many of the manufacturers’ claims

D. few products actually prove to be environment friendly

2.As indicated in this passage, with so many good claims, the consumers _______.

A. are becoming more cautious about the products they are going to buy

B. are still not willing to pay more for products with green labeling

C. are becoming more aware of the effects different products have on the environment

D. still do not know the exact impact of different products on the environment

3.It can be inferred from the passage that the lobby group Consumer International wants to _______.

A. make product labeling satisfy ISO requirements

B. see all household products meet environmental standards

C. warn consumers of the danger of so-called green products

D. verify the effects of non-polluting products

 Many different tribes live in the Ituri rain forest of Africa, but the Pygmies are the most unusual. Most of the men are not much more than four feet tall. They weigh only about eighty pounds. The women are even smaller and thinner. But in spite of the fact that they are small, these people are perfectly formed men and women.

      It is an exciting experience to visit a Pygmy encampment for the first time. Before you go, you must send word ahead that you are coming. Some friendly native or trader must take the message to the Tiki-Tikis. Otherwise the whole tribe will disappear into the depths of the jungle long before you have come close enough to be welcomed.

      The great Ituri rain forest seems cut off from the rest of the earth. There are living, dead, and dying trees on every side. Except where a clearing has been burned and chopped out, a man may live his whole life in the Ituri and never see farther than twenty yards.

      It takes sharp eyes to discover the almost hidden path to the Pygmy camp. The path is no wider than a small man’s foot. No sound breaks the silence in this part of the forest. There are no signs of people.

      The stranger must walk carefully. What appears to be a bent branch may prove to be a deadly snake. A spotted gold patch of sunlight may be a crouching leopard(豹).

Even the Pygmy camp comes as a surprise. The leafy shelters in which the little people live are hardly three feet high. They look so much like the surrounding undergrowth that they might easily be passed by. These houses contain no furniture of any sort. The beds are merely plantain leaves spread out on the earth floor. There are no cooking pots: food is eaten raw or smoked over a fire. Spears, bows and arrows are the only possessions of these people. When the tribe moves to a new camp there is nothing to carry except these weapons and babies too small to walk.

According to the passage, we can conclude _____.

    A. the Pygmies are the shortest tribe worldwide

    B. the Pygmies are short but normal in mentality

    C. most of the Pygmy men are more than four feet

    D. the Pygmies live in the forest of America

Paragraph 2 mainly suggests that the Pygmies ______.

    A. are unwilling to communicate with people outside

    B. are very cruel and they will kill you with the spears

    C. are friendly to the tourists visiting them for the first time

    D. move so fast and often that can’t be caught up with easily

Which of the following word can describe the life of Pygmy?

    A. Quiet.        B. Active.     C. Hard.        D. Busy.

Which of the following is TRUE of the Pygmy?

    A. Their houses can’t be easily found in the hurt rain forest.

    B. Their houses, which are three feet high, are made of wood.

    C. Weapons and cooking pots are their most valuable possessions.

D. They are living in harmony with dangerous animals around.

Consumers are being confused and misled by the hodge-podge （大杂烩） of environmental claims made by household products, according to a “green labeling” study published by Consumers International Friday．
Among the report’s more outrageous （令人无法容忍的） findings, a German fertilizer described itself as “earthworm friendly”, a brand of flour said it was “non-polluting” and a British toilet paper claimed to be “environmentally friendlier”．
The study was written and researched by Britain’s National Consumer Council （NCC） for lobby group Consumer International．It was funded by the German and Dutch governments and the European Commission．
“While many good and useful claims are being made, it is clear there is a long way to go in ensuring shoppers are adequately informed about the environmental impact of products they buy,” said Consumers International director Anna Fielder．
The 10-country study surveyed product packaging in Britain．Western Europe, Scandinavia and the United States．It found that products sold in Germany and the United Kingdom made the most environmental claims on average．
The report focused on claims made by specific products, such as detergent （洗涤剂）, insect sprays and by some garden products．It did not test the claims, but compared them to labeling guidelines set by the International Standards Organization （ISO） in September, 1999．
Researchers documented claims of environmental friendliness made by about 2,000 products and found many too unclear or too misleading to meet ISO standards．
“Many products had specially-designed labels to make them seem environmentally friendly, but in fact many of these symbols mean nothing,”said report researcher Philip Page．
“Laundry detergents made the most number of claims with 158．Household cleaners were second with 145 separate claims, while paints were third on our list with 73．The high numbers show how confusing it must be for consumers to sort the true from the misleading．” he said．
The ISO labeling standards ban vague or misleading claims on product packaging, because terms such as “environmentally friendly” and “non-polluting” cannot be tested．“What we are now pushing for is to have multinational corporations meet the standards set by the ISO．” said Page．
1．According to the passage, the NCC found it outrageous that ____．
A．all the products surveyed claim to meet ISO standards
B．the claims made by products are often unclear or misleading
C．consumers would believe many of the manufactures’claim
D．few products actually prove to be environmentally friendly
2．A study was carried out by Britain’s NCC to ____．
A．find out how many claims made by products fail to meet environmental standards
B．inform the consumers of the environmental impact of the products they buy
C．examine claims made by products against ISO standards
D．test the guidelines set by the International Standards Organization
3．What is one of the consequences caused by the many claims of household products?
A．They are likely to lead to serious environmental problems
B．Consumers find it difficult to tell the true from the false
C．They could arouse widespread anger among consumer
D．Consumers will tend to buy products they don’t need
4．It can be inferred from the passage that the lobby group Consumer International wants to ____．
A．make product labeling satisfy ISO requirements
B．see all household products meet environmental standards
C．warn consumers of the danger of so-called green products
D．prove the efforts of non-polluting products