英國人喜歡吃快餐。然而，越來越多的人正在轉向素食和植物性飲食。這是否意味著這些人不能再享受那些美味的經典快餐？情況似乎不是這樣 —— 歡迎加入純素食快餐潮流。純素快餐為什么如此受歡迎？它比普通快餐更健康嗎？本期 “隨身英語” 介紹純素食快餐的流行趨勢。

Vocabulary: food and nutrition 詞匯：食品和營養

There are around 600,000 vegans in the UK, according to The Vegan Society. That's just over 1% of the population – an amount expected to increase to 25% by 2025. And if there's one type of food that Brits love, it's fast food. True, it's not the most nutritious, but there's nothing quite like the crunch of crispy chips, or that first big bite into a juicy hamburger. People in the UK love junk food so much that there was a 34% increase in the number of fast food outlets from 2010 to 2018, according to the Office for National Statistics. It's no surprise, then, that vegan fast food is also on the rise.

Vegan fast food has become big business. At Just Eat, an online food delivery company, vegan orders more than doubled in 2018, a spokesperson told the BBC. Greggs, a chain of high-street bakeries, named its vegan sausage roll the 'fastest-selling product in six years'. And big franchises such as McDonald's and KFC have announced meat-free chicken nuggets to come in the future.

What's driving this popularity? Katrina Fox, founder of Vegan Business Media, believes it's the result of social media and the breaking down of stereotypes. "Vegan food is no longer seen as a bit of lettuce and lentils – you can eat pretty much anything," she told the BBC.

It's also claimed that there are health benefits. John Marulanda, owner of Mooshies - a vegan burger bar in London – wants to implement "a change to a healthy version of fast food." Something, he claims, that comes as a result of the inherent nutritional value of the ingredients they use.

But, is vegan fast food actually healthy? Azmina Govindji of the British Dietetic Association says "not to assume" that is the case. "It's fine if those products have got vitamin B12, iodine or calcium added to them… but they can still be fried, it can still have lots of creamy, fatty sauces and lots of salt."

Given the current growth in orders, the trend for vegan fast food isn't likely to disappear any time soon. Health-wise, it may not be any more nourishing than regular fast food, but for many, the lack of animal suffering involved in the process is a big plus.

詞匯表

vegan 嚴格素食主義者
fast food 快餐
nutritious 營養豐富的
crispy 酥脆的
juicy 多汁的
junk food 垃圾食品
bakery 面包店
meat-free 無肉的
nugget 小塊食品
lentil 扁豆
nutritional value 營養價值
ingredient （食品）成分，原料
vitamin 維生素
iodine 碘
calcium 鈣
fried 油炸的
creamy 像奶油的
fatty 富含脂肪的
sauce 醬，調味汁
nourishing 富有營養的

測驗與練習

1. 閱讀課文并回答問題。

1. True or false: The number of vegans in the UK is expected to fall by 2025.

2. What evidence is there that vegan fast food has become popular?

3. According to Katrina Fox, what is making vegan food popular?

4. According to Azmina Govindji, why should we not assume that vegan fast food is healthy?

5. Which word in the text means 'existing as a natural or basic part of something'?

2. 請在不參考課文的情況下完成下列練習。選擇一個意思合適的單詞填入句子的空格處。

1. I don't want to eat fast food tonight. I feel like something more _______.

newtrishus                  nutritious                    vitamin                     fried

2. Before cooking anything, I like to gather together all the _______ I need to make the recipe.

vegan                         junk food                    ingredients               iodine

3. We encourage children to drink milk because it's a good source of _______ to keep their bones healthy.

vitamin                       calcium                      fast food                    ingredients

4. I always prefer thick, chunky soup to thin, watery soup. When soup has thick vegetables in it, it's much more _______.

nutrition                      nutrients                    nourishment               nourishing

5. I can't eat too many sausages. I love their taste, but they're too _______ I prefer my meat leaner.

creamy                       fatty                           fried                            vegan

答案

1. 閱讀課文并回答問題。

1. True or false: The number of vegans in the UK is expected to fall by 2025.
False. By 2025, 25% of the UK population is expected to be vegan. 

2. What evidence is there that vegan fast food has become popular?
Just Eat says that vegan orders more than doubled in 2018. Greggs' fastest-selling product in 6 years was a vegan sausage roll and big franchises such as McDonald's and KFC have announced meat-free chicken nuggets.

3. According to Katrina Fox, what is making vegan food popular?
Katrina Fox believes it's the result of social media and the breaking down of stereotypes. 

4. According to Azmina Govindji, why should we not assume that vegan fast food is healthy?
Because those products can still be fried, it can still have lots of creamy, fatty sauces and lots of salt. 

5. Which word in the text means 'existing as a natural or basic part of something'?
Inherent. (Something, he claims, that comes as a result of the inherent nutritional value of the ingredients they use.)

2 . 請在不參考課文的情況下完成下列練習。選擇一個意思合適的單詞填入句子的空格處。

1. I don't want to eat fast food tonight. I feel like something more nutritious.

2. Before cooking anything, I like to gather together all the ingredients I need to make the recipe.

3. We encourage children to drink milk because it's a good source of calcium to keep their bones healthy.

4. I always prefer thick, chunky soup to thin, watery soup. When soup has thick vegetables in it, it's much more nourishing.

5. I can't eat too many sausages. I love their taste, but they're too fatty. I prefer my meat leaner.