The origins of food

Andy Keedwell

Activity 1

Before you read，match the word or phrase to a definition.

1. ancestor

2. distant

3. merchant

4. poisonous

5. transport

6. wild

a. a form from the past which has developed into something modern

b. far away

c. describes something that will make you ill or kill you if you eat it

d. somebody who buys and sells things

e. not kept or farmed by people

f. take something from one place to another

Where does our food come from？

Once upon a time carrots were purple，there were no pineapples in Asia or lemons irAmerica，and many people thought potatoes were poisonous. Many types of fruit and vegetablegrew only in one place. So how did they spread all over the world？

Changing colours

Five thousand years ago，carrots only grew in Afghanistan and most were purple. Only afew were orange as they are today！ Farmers in Holland were looking for a fruit or vegetable torepresent their king，William of Orange，and orange carrots were just what they were looking for-they became the ancestors of all modern carrots.

At home in the mountains

Many plants only grow in certain places on Earth，often deep in the jungle. The home ofpotatoes is in the mountains of the Andes in South America. Bananas come from Papua NewGuinea and lemons grow wild in China.

World travel

But once people realised that many of these plants were good to eat，they took them farfrom the places where they grew. Fruit，in particular，attracted thirsty travellers. Arab merchantstransported different fruits and vegetables around the world，such as oranges which they tookfrom Asia to distant countries such as Spain and Sicily. The Spanish returned from South Americawith many new types of food including chocolate，chilli and corn.

Some unusual uses

People often had problems deciding what to do with these new fruits and vegetables，or usedthem for different purposes from today. Carrots were used not as food but as medicine to protectpeople from poison or even（it was believed）to make people fall in love. The first tomatoes andpineapples were grown not as food but to make the garden look pretty. And many people wereworried about potatoes-although they are good for us，their leaves are poisonous and poorerpeople believed they could be used for black magic. In Germany，people only began eatingpotatoes when the king ordered that people who did not eat them would have their ears andnoses cut off！

And today. .

Today，we are so used to our different types of food that we don't think about where theycame from. But for each pineapple，potato or carrot we eat，there is a long history！

Activity 2

Now complete the sentences using words from the text. Make any changes to thewords that are necessary.

1. He travelled around the world，often to many（_____.）places.

2. In my town，you can buy food，carpets and toys from the（_____）in the market.

3. Millions of years ago，the（_____）of modern humans lived in caves.

4. Some plants give us food，but others are（_____）and will harm us.

5. The number of（_____）animals gets less every year，but many live in zoos.

6. We use trains，lorries，ships and planes to（_____）food from one country to another.

Activity 3

Look at the types of fruits and vegetables in the box. Using the information in the text to help you，choose a type of fruit or vegetable from the box to complete each sentence below. There are some words you will not need to use.

tomatoes

carrots

chilli

corn

pineapples

bananas

lemons

oranges

potatoes

chocolate

1. （_____）reminded people of the name of their king.

2. （_____）were only eaten after a royal command.

3. （_____）grow well in high places.

4. （_____），（______ _）and（_____）travelled to Europe from Asia.

5. （_____）and（______）were grown because people thought they were beautiful.

6. （_____）were believed to cure diseases.

Activity 4

Some nouns in English have only anuncountable form（for example： information，homework）which never have a plural.

Some words in English have both an

uncountable form and a countable form（often meaning types of）. For example，the article says：

Fruit in general： Fruit，in particular，attracted thirsty travelers. （uncountable）

Types of fruit： Arab merchants carried different fruits and vegetables around the world. （countable）

Here are some more examples.

First，decide which forms of the noun are countable or uncountable. Then choose one form to complete each sentence.

Activity 4

glass / glasses

perfume / perfumes

tea / teas

chocolate / chocolates

time / times

hair / hairs

Example：

He had his hair cut yesterday.

1. The customer found three long，black（_____）in his soup.

2. I'm so delighted-he gave me abottle of（_____）for my birthday！

3. We use the fruit of the cocoa treeto make（_____）.

4. We haven't got much（_____）. Hurry up，because we'll be late！

5. The new waiter broke three（_____）on his first day.

6. Chinese，Indian，Kenyan-this article will describe how the（_____）ofthe world are grown.

Activity 5

Which of the fruits and vegetables mentioned in the article grow in your country？ Where do the fruits and vegetables you like come from？

Answers

Activity1

1. a

2. b

3. d

4. c

5. f

6. e

Activity2

1. distant

2. merchants

3. ancestors

4. poisonous

5. wild

6. transport

Activity3

1. Carrots

2. Potatoes

3. Potatoes

4. Carrots，lemons，oranges

5. Tomatoes，pineapples

6. Carrots

Activity4

1. hairs

2. perfume

3. chocolate

4. time

5. glasses

6. teas