From VOA Learning English, this is the Agriculture Report.
这里是美国之音慢速英语农业报道。
Regulators in the United States are asking companies that make antibiotic drugs to tell farmers to stop using some of the drugs on livestock. Antibiotics are medicines use to fight bacteria and infections.
美国监管机构要求抗生素制药公司告知农民停止对家畜使用一些药物。抗生素是对抗细菌和感染的药物。
Large animal farms around the world often use small amount of antibiotics to help healthy animals grow faster with less feed. They put the antibiotics in the food and water they give to cows, chickens and pigs.
世界各地的大型动物养殖场通常使用少量抗生素以帮助健康动物少吃快长。他们把抗生素投到了牛、鸡、猪的食物和水中。
Opponents of this use of antibiotic say it adds to worldwide resistance to such drugs. Public health experts say, using an antibiotic on an animal gives bacteria the chance to built double defense against the drug. This makes antibiotics less effective when they are used to fight diseases in humans.
反对这样使用抗生素的人表示，这增加了这类药物的全球耐药性。公共健康专家表示，对动物使用抗生素给了细菌双重机会来对抗这种药物。这使得抗生素在被用于对抗人体疾病时的效果更差。
Last month, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration asked drug companies to voluntarily change the words on the containers of antibiotics so far use in farm animals.
上月，美国食品药品管理局要求制药公司自愿变更目前农场动物使用的抗生素包装上的说明文字。
Michael Taylor is the agency's Deputy Commissioner.
迈克尔·泰勒（Michael Taylor）是该局副局长。
"With these changes, there will be fewer approved uses, and the remaining uses will be under tighter control to minimize the impact on resistance," said Taylor.
泰勒表示，“有了这些变更，被批准的用途将会更少，其余用途也将受到严格限制，以减少对耐药性的影响。”
The decision by the FDA to ask rather than order the drug companies to make the changes has angered some activists. But the FDA said, changes would be made more quickly if it ask the drug companies to voluntarily change how they use antibiotics.
美国食品药品管理局的这项决定要求而不是责令制药公司做出这些变更，激怒了一些活动人士。但美国食品药品管理局表示，要求制药公司自愿变更他们对抗生素的使用，起效将会更快。
Dimitri Drekonja is a doctor with the Infectious Diseases Society of America. He supports the FDA's decision to ask for voluntary changes, but he is not sure the drug companies will do what the agency has asked.
Dimitri Drekonja是美国传染病学会的一位医生。他支持美国食品药品管理局要求自愿变更的决定，但他不确定制药公司是否会执行该机构的要求。
"If this voluntary effort is taken up by the entire industry and everybody goes along with it, then it will actually be a needed first and potentially last step. Will that happen? I have my doubts," Drekonja added.
他补充说，“如果是整个行业自愿采取这些措施，所有人遵守它，那么它将是必要的第一步和潜在的最后一步。这种情况会发生吗？我挺怀疑。”
Some large drug companies have already agreed to make the changes. Liz Wagstrom is the Chief Veterinarian at the National Pork Producers Council. He says the pig farming industry is preparing for a change in the way it uses antibiotics, even it will cost some farmers money.
一些大型制药公司已经同意做出变更。Liz Wagstrom是全国猪肉生产者委员会的主治兽医。他说，养猪业正准备在抗生素用法上做出改变，即使这将耗费一些农民的资金。
"We may lose some efficiency. We may have some animals that may not grow quite as quickly or take more grain to reach their full weight, " said Wagstrom.
他说，“我们的效率可能会变差。我们有些动物可能长得没那么快，或者会耗费更多粮食才能重量达标。”
She also says the changes may mean farmers will have more sick animals.
她还表示，这些变化可能意味着农民会有更多动物生病。
Doctor Drekonja says it may be difficult to measure how the new policy affects drug resistances.
Drekonja医生表示，很难衡量新政策对药物耐药性的影响。
"It would be great if there was sort-of like a dashboard and you could watch the needle drop in the amount of antibiotics used and then watch the next gauge, which is the national resistance and see what happens there. We don't have two simple gauges like that," Drekonja says.
他说，“如果有类似汽车仪表盘，可以看到抗生素使用量指针的下降，然后观察下一个全国耐药性的仪表，看看发生了什么，那就太好了。可惜我们没这样的两个仪表。”
He says there is a lack of good information on the amounts of antibiotics used on farms, as well as by doctors.
他说，目前缺少农场抗生素使用量的数据，也缺乏医生使用的抗生素数量的数据。
Some bacteria have continued to be resistant to drugs for years even after they have been banned from animal use. But doctor say they have been taking more steps to limit their use of antibiotics with humans, and they believe farmers should do the same.
即使在禁止被用于动物很多年后，一些细菌仍然对这些药物有抗药性。但医生表示，他们已经采取更多措施限制抗生素在人类的使用，他们相信农民也应该这样做。
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