There are trends in food much as there are trends in clothing. Interest in food fashions has risen rapidly since the birth of the smartphone when people first began taking photos【Q31】 of their food and instantly sharing them with their friends. The food industry in the UK in particular is obsessed with finding and exploiting the next big food trend. Marketeers aim to create a huge demand for a food item which was previously unknown or not needed.
One of the most effective ways of promoting a new food product is by using social media influencers as brand ambassadors In return for free samples many influencers will post content about a product although there are influencers with hundreds of thousands of followers who can command large fees for their services Companies which sell vegan【Q32】 produce were pioneers in being able to increase sales really quickly in this way.
For a food item to become really popular, it has to be readily available. So supermarkets have a role to play in creating a new food trend. They have dedicated teams closely following which new products or ingredients are trending on social media and are particularly interested in what well-known chefs【Q33】 are putting on their menus.
I'd like to look at a few examples of marketing campaigns which were really successful in launching a new fashion trend. Starting in the 1990s with the avocado. A British PR company was hired to raise its profile and stimulate demand. They paid for a group of journalists【Q34】 to travel out to South Africa to meet avocado farmers. Articles written following this visit helped to educate the British public about the avocado, which at this time was certainly not the daily staple it's since become.
Advertisements were designed to promote the avocado as a superfood, rich in nutrients and therefore beneficial for health【Q35】. Avocados became hugely fashionable, and within a few years UK avocado sales had grown from £13 million annually to around £150 million, making it one of the most successful fresh produce campaigns in UK history.
Oat milk is a recent example of a new product which became fashionable very quickly. Now there are many brands available but one company which had early success was the Swedish brand Oatly They attracted a lot of attention with a media campaign which used provocation as a way of getting their message across effectively. The fact that this campaign aggravated competitors producing milk from dairy cows was seen as a plus, as it helped to make oat milk seem cool.
In the USA, the brand decided against a big retail launch in favour of getting the product into coffee【Q36】 chains, which removed the need for a big advertising budget. This proved far more effective than offering samples in supermarkets.
Oat milk had an advantage over other alternative milk products, such as almond milk. Many consumers prefer it because it has less of an impact on the environment【Q37】. It requires significantly less water to produce than other alternative milk products and it also has a relatively low carbon footprint.
Norwegian skrei, a rarely available seasonal fish delicacy, otherwise known as Arctic cod, is now found on the menus of Michelin-starred restaurants throughout Europe. The demand for Skre has been used by a food marketing agency to build the reputation【Q38】 of Norway's fisheries in general. Marketing surveys have shown that a significant number of shoppers now associate Norway with excellent seafood.
Food trends can be considered a good thing in some ways, as they can benefit farmers and food producers enormously. The public can also be encouraged to buy things which are more sustainably produced. But ethical concerns have been raised about the effects a surge in demand can cause. Quinoa is a classic example. This plant is native to Peru and when demand peaked some years ago, the price【Q39】 soared making it unaffordable for local people. While the popularity of quinoa has benefited farmers financially there have been other negative consequences. As demand grew, farmers began working the land all year round in order to produce more quinoa. One issue has been that the fertility of the soil【Q40】 decreased dramatically. which could potentially lead to desertification in some areas.
Another example would be the case of…
Complete the notes below.
Write ONE WORD ONLY for each answer.
听前预测：定位词为 interest、food fashions，提示词为 started with、of food，此处应填名词。
题目解析：背景介绍比较短，开篇第二句就能听到题干信息 interest 原词出现，马上准备抓取。听到原文“Interest in food fashions has risen rapidly since the birth of the smartphone when people first began taking photos of their food and instantly sharing them with their friends.”，意为“自智能手机问世以来，人们开始拍摄食物照片并即时与朋友分享，公众对食品潮流的关注度也随之迅速提升”。该句中 began taking photos of their food 跟题干 started with of food 语义一致，因此判断 photos 符合题干搭配要求，为该题正确答案，故填写。
听前预测：定位词为 inf luencers、social media、ambassadors，提示词为 sales of、food brands，此处应填形容词或名词，修饰食物。
题目解析：题目上一行信息 social media、influencers、ambassadors 皆先后原词出现，提示定位到该题，准备抓取。听到原文提到“Companies which sell vegan produce were pioneers in being able to increase sales really quickly in this way.”，意为“销售素食产品的企业是通过这种方式快速提升销量的先行者”。根据题干搭配要求， 该句中 vegan 一词跟 food 搭配合理，题干信息 have grown rapidly this way 在该句中通过 increase sales really quickly in this way 来表达，因此确认该句为答案句， vegan 为该题正确答案，故填写。
听前预测：定位词为 supermarkets、ingredients，提示词为 famous、influential，此处应填表示人的复数名词。
题目解析：该题要结合上层信息辅助定位，原文中可以听到题目上一行信息 supermarkets、ingredients 先后原词出现，提示定位到该题，准备抓取。随后原文提到 are particularly interested in what well-known chefs are putting on their menus，意为“对知名厨师在菜单上推出的菜品格外关注”。该句中 well-known 替换题干信息 famous 一词，因此判断 chefs 符合题干搭配，为该题正确答案，故填写。
听前预测：定位词为 avocado、South Africa，提示词为 were invited，此处应填表示人的复数名词。
题目解析：小标题信息 avocado 原词出现，提示定位到该题，准备抓取。原文提到“They paid for a group of journalists to travel out to South Africa to meet avocado farmers.”，意为“该公司出资邀请一批记者前往南非去采访牛油果种植户”。根据题干搭配要求，该句中表示人的复数名词有 journalists 和 farmers，考生需要判断 farmers 是题干中 growers 一词的同义替换。因此 journalists 才是该题正确答案，故填写。
听前预测：定位词为 advertising，提示词为 benefits，此处应填名词或形容词。
题目解析：听到 advertisements 一词出现，提示定位到该题，准备抓取。原文提到“Advertisements were designed to promote the avocado as a 'superfood': rich in nutrients and therefore beneficial for health.”，意为“广告宣传将牛油果定位为超级食品：它富含营养，因此有益健康”，其中 beneficial for health 即为 health benefits。因此判断 health 符合该题搭配要求，故填写。本题难度不大。
听前预测：定位词为 USA，提示词为 shops，此处应填名词或形容词，修饰 shops。
题目解析：题干专有名词信息 USA 原词出现，提示定位到该题，准备抓取。原文提到“In the USA, the brand decided against a big retail launch in favour of getting the product into coffee chains , which removed the need for a big advertising budget.”，该句中 coffee chains 意为“咖啡连锁店”，即为 coffee shops。因此判断 coffee 一词修饰 shops 合理，故填写。该句中 removed the need for a big advertising budget 跟题干信息 reduced the need for advertising 表达一致，故确认答案。
听前预测：定位词为 consumers，提示词为 appealed、concerned about，此处应填名词。
题目解析：该题定位词 consumers 原词出现，原文提到“Many consumers prefer it because it has less of an impact on the environment.”，意为“许多消费者更青睐它（燕麦奶），是因为它对环境的影响更小”，说明消费者的偏好与“环境（environment）”相关。而题目中 are concerned about（关注）与原文 prefer...because it has less of an impact on...（青睐……因为它对……影响更小）存在因果关联——正是因为产品对环境更友好，才吸引了关注环境的消费者。因此，判断 environment 符合 原文语义和题干搭配，为该题正确答案，故填写。随后原文提到“It requires significantly less water to produce than other alternative milk products...”，注意该句 中的 water 描述的是燕麦奶的生产用水量更少，并非消费者关注的对象，因此为干扰项，注意排除。
听前预测：定位词为 Norwegian skrei，提示词为 strengthen、Norwegian seafood，此处应填名词。
题目解析：小标题信息 Norwegian skrei 原词出现，提示定位到该题，准备抓取。原文提到“The demand for skrei has been used by a food marketing agency to build the reputation of Norway's fisheries in general.”，句中 build the reputation of Norway's fisheries（打造挪威渔业声誉）跟题干 strengthen the of Norwegian seafood 语义表达一致，因此判断 reputation 为该题正确答案，故填写。
听前预测：定位词为 Quinoa，提示词为 increase、its，此处应填名词。
题目解析：题干专有名词信息 Quinoa 原词出现，提示定位到该题，准备抓取。原文提到“This plant is native to Peru, and when demand peaked some years ago, the price soared...”，表明这种作物（藜麦）几年前全球需求达到高峰，导致价格飞涨。 因此判断 price 符合题干搭配，为该题正确答案，故填写。其中该句中的 soared替换题干信息 increase，该题难度不大。
听前预测：定位词为 overuse、resources，提示词为 poor quality，此处应填名词。
题目解析：该题定位信息较弱，原文中并未听到题干信息 overuse、resources 等原词。上一题结束后，原文提到“While the popularity of quinoa has benefitted farmers financially, there have been other negative consequences.”，该句承上启下，引出该作物的负面影响。接着原文提到“As demand grew, farmers began working the land all year round in order to produce more quinoa.”，句中 farmers began working the land all year round（农民开始全年耕种土地）即为题干信息 overuse of resources 的具象化替换。接着考生可以通过强调信号 one issue 关注到该题答案句，“One issue has been that the fertility of the soil decreased dramatically, which could potentially lead to desertification in some areas.”，句中 the fertility of the soil decreased dramatically（土壤肥力急剧下降）即为题干信息 poor quality 的具体表现，因此判断 soil 符合题干搭配，故填写。