Photos courtesy of Bangkok Post
New Zealand and Australia will soon officially start importing fresh lychees and longans from Thailand for the first time. This will generate at least 2 billion baht for the kingdom each year, according to officials.
Read the following story from the Bangkok Post to learn more about this new plan.
New Zealand and Australia have announced that they will import fresh lychees and longans from Thailand beginning this year, according to Science and Technology Minister Pichet Durongkaveroj.
Pichet said that it is the first time New Zealand and Australia would import the fruits from Thailand, and that the fruits will undergo irradiation treatment to eradicate plant pests.
IMPORTS APPROVED
Pichet said on February 17 that the two countries recently approved the imports after they sent their plant quarantine experts to visit the Irradiation Centre under the Thailand Institute of Nuclear Technology last year. They were apparently happy with what they saw.
The centre carries out irradiation of food products and agricultural produce such as spices, herbs, fruits and seafood products.
“We expect the value of exports of the two types of fruits will rise to 2.3 billion baht a year after New Zealand and Australia import them,” Pichet said.
EXPERTS SATISFIED
Speaking at a briefing on February 17 at the Science and Technology Ministry to announce the development, Pichet said that he was told both countries decided to import the fruits because their experts were satisfied with the effectiveness of the irradiation treatment.
Pichet said he was also told the irradiation is carried out in line with international standards that can eliminate any diseases and bugs in those fruits and other farm products.
“New Zealand and Australia are concerned about plant diseases and bugs that may come from local plants, so all fruit shipments must first undergo irradiation treatment,” Pichet said.
Exercises
Specify whether each of the following vocabulary words is used in the story as a verb, adverb or adjective.
1. concerned ……………….
2. undergo ……………….
3. eradicate ……………….
4. apparently ……………….
Vocabulary
- irradiation (n): if food is irradiated, it is treated with radioactive rays in order to kill bacteria and make it last longer
quarantine (n): a period of time when an animal, a person or plant that has or may have a disease is kept away from others in order to prevent the disease from spreading
eliminate (v): to remove or get rid of something or somebody
