American farmers are using an ancient tree from India to produce beans for making protein-rich foods and biofuels. The tree is called pongamia.[qh]

美国农民正在使用一种来自印度的古老树木来生产豆类，用于制造富含蛋白质的食品和生物燃料。这种树被称为水黄皮。[qh]

It is native to India, Southeast Asia and Australia.[qh]

它原产于印度、东南亚和澳大利亚。[qh]

But farmers in the southern state of Florida have found the tree grows well there too.[qh]

但是，佛罗里达州南部的农民发现，这种树在那里也长得很好。[qh]

In some parts of Florida, pongamia trees have now replaced citrus trees, which have long faced major struggles with disease.[qh]

在佛罗里达州的一些地区，水黄皮树现在已经取代了柑橘树，因为柑橘树长期以来一直面临着严重的疾病困扰。[qh]

Pongamia trees produce a small brown bean known as a legume.[qh]

水黄皮树会结出一种被称为豆荚的小褐色豆子。[qh]

The legume can be used in the production of several products, including cooking oil and protein-rich foods.[qh]

豆科植物可用于生产多种产品，包括食用油和富含蛋白质的食品。[qh]

The beans can also be used to produce a biofuel, mostly for airplanes.[qh]

这种豆类还可以用来生产生物燃料，主要用于飞机。[qh]

Pongamia do well in Florida because the trees like hot temperatures and can survive in dry or rainy conditions.[qh]

水黄皮在佛罗里达州生长良好，因为这种树喜欢高温，并且能够在干燥或多雨的条件下存活。[qh]

They also do not require special additives, called fertilizers, or chemicals to kill insects and other life that might threaten growth.[qh]

它们也不需要特殊的添加剂，即所谓的肥料，或化学物质来杀死昆虫和其他可能威胁生长的生物。[qh]

And unlike fruits like oranges and grapefruit, the beans do not require teams of workers to pick.[qh]

而且，与橙子和葡萄柚等水果不同，这种豆子不需要大量工人来采摘。[qh]

Instead, they can be easily collected with a machine that shakes the trees and makes the legumes fall to the ground.[qh]

相反，它们可以很容易地用一种机器收集，这种机器摇动树木，使豆类掉到地上。[qh]

A San Francisco-based company, called Terviva, has invented a process that removes substances from the bean that gives it a bad taste so it can be used for food production.[qh]

一家总部位于旧金山的公司，名为Terviva，发明了一种工艺，可以去除豆类中使其味道不好的物质，以便将其用于食品生产。[qh]

The company’s founder, Naveen Sikka, told The Associated Press that Terviva has been able to offer Florida farmers a new chance to replace their failed citrus crops.[qh]

该公司的创始人纳文·西卡告诉美联社，Terviva已经能够为佛罗里达州的农民提供一个新的机会，以取代他们失败的柑橘作物。[qh]

Pongamia, he said, “is the perfect fit” to help them rebuild their businesses.[qh]

水黄皮，他说，“是帮助他们重建业务的完美选择”。[qh]

Ron Edwards is the chairman of Terviva's board of directors. He is also a long-time Florida citrus grower.[qh]

罗恩·爱德华兹是Terviva董事会主席。他也是佛罗里达州的一位长期柑橘种植者。[qh]

He told the AP that turning this wild tree into an agricultural success story was not easy.[qh]

他告诉美联社，将这种野生树木转化为农业上的成功故事并不容易。[qh]

“There are no books to read on it, either, because no one else has ever done it,” Edwards said.[qh]

“也没有关于它的书籍可供阅读，因为没有其他人曾经做过这件事，”爱德华兹说。[qh]

In addition, he said bees and other pollinators that feed on the tree’s flowers help support the local environment.[qh]

此外，他说蜜蜂和其他以这种树的花为食的传粉者有助于支持当地环境。[qh]

Edwards added that an estimated one half hectare of the trees could provide the same amount of oil as about 1.6 hectares of soy beans.[qh]

爱德华兹补充说，估计半公顷的树木可以提供与大约1.6公顷的大豆相同数量的油。[qh]

The pongamia bean also produces a high-quality protein that can be used to make many plant-based products.[qh]

水黄皮豆还能产出一种高质量的蛋白质，可用于制造许多植物性产品。[qh]

“There’s a lot of potential for the food industry and the oil and petroleum industry,” Edwards said.[qh]

“它在食品工业和石油工业有很大的潜力，”爱德华兹说。[qh]

Experts say the problems linked to Florida’s citrus crops – disease and climate issues – have also affected most of the world’s top citrus-producing nations.[qh]

专家表示，佛罗里达州柑橘作物相关的问题——疾病和气候问题——也影响了世界上大多数主要的柑橘生产国。[qh]

For example, this year's harvest in Brazil – the world’s largest exporter of orange juice – is expected to be the worst in 36 years.[qh]

例如，巴西是世界上最大的橙汁出口国，而今年巴西的收成预计将是36年来最差的。[qh]

The Brazilian citrus group Fundecitrus made that prediction after a period of major flooding and then extended dryness.[qh]

巴西柑橘集团Fundecitrus在经历了一段严重的洪水期和随后的长期干旱期后做出了这一预测。[qh]

But Edwards noted that climate and disease have little effect on pongamia trees. “It’s just tough, a jungle-tested tree” he said.[qh]

但爱德华兹指出，气候和疾病对水黄皮树几乎没有影响。他说：“它就是坚韧，是经过丛林考验的树。”[qh]

“It stands up to a lot of abuse with very little caretaking."[qh]

它非常耐养，几乎不需要维护。[qh]

Pongamia also grows well in Hawaii, where it is now being used on land where sugarcane once grew.[qh]

水黄皮在夏威夷也长得很好，现在它被用于曾经种植甘蔗的土地上。[qh]

John Olson is a Florida farmer who replaced his grapefruit trees with 87 hectares of pongamia.[qh]

约翰·奥尔森是佛罗里达州的一位农民，他用87公顷的水黄皮取代了他的葡萄柚树。[qh]

He told the AP he felt he had little choice because, “For the most part, the citrus industry has died in Florida.”[qh]

他告诉美联社，他觉得自己别无选择，因为“在很大程度上，柑橘产业在佛罗里达州已经消亡了。”[qh]

Olson said his grapefruit business was a profitable operation throughout the 1980s and 1990s, although the farm was not large.[qh]

奥尔森说，他的葡萄柚生意在整个20世纪80年代和90年代都是盈利的，尽管农场规模不大。[qh]

Edwards said he is happy that pongamia trees have replaced some citrus trees in Florida.[qh]

爱德华兹说，他很高兴在佛罗里达州，水黄皮树已经取代了一些柑橘树。[qh]

And he said he likes that pongamia oil can replace some oils that are more environmentally damaging to produce. .[qh]

他说他喜欢水黄皮油可以替代一些生产过程中对环境破坏更大的油。[qh]

I’m Bryan Lynn[qh]

我是布莱恩·林恩。[qh]