Food companies say a new kind of maize could take the crunch out of corn chips and other popular foods.
食品公司称一种新型玉米的诞生会夺走玉米片和其它常见食物中的咀嚼口感。

The big Swiss company Syngenta genetically engineered the maize to contain an enzyme called alpha amylase. 
一家叫做先正达的大型瑞士公司对玉米进行了基因改造，使得玉米里含有一种叫做阿尔法淀粉酶的酶。

The company says this enzyme will help the crop produce more ethanol, a renewable fuel, while using less water and energy.
公司表示，有了这种酶，玉米可以用更少的水和能量生产出更多的乙醇。

Syngenta official Jack Bernens explains how it works.
先正达公司高层杰克·伯尼斯解释了其中的原理。

It breaks the starch down into sugar which then is obviously fermented into ethanol.
要知道，简单来说，就是这种酶将淀粉分解成糖，然后很明显地，糖再发酵成乙醇。

A 2007 law requires gasoline in the United States to contain renewable fuels. 
2007年颁布的一项法律要求美国的汽油中必须含有可再生性燃料。

About 40% of America's corn crop is being used this year to make ethanol.
今年，美国大约40%的玉米作物将用于制造乙醇。

The Department of Agriculture has approved the genetically modified maize without restrictions. 
美国农业部已经批准了转基因玉米的无限制生产。

But five major groups in the food industry say they are concerned that the new maize could enter the food supply. 
但是食品行业的五大组织表示，他们担心这种新型玉米会进入食品供应领域。

They are not expressing concerns about food safety and have not opposed other genetically engineered crops.
他们并没有对食品安全表示担忧，也没有反对其它转基因作物。

But in a joint statement they say the enzyme that breaks down starch could harm the taste of their products. 
但他们在一份联合声明中称，这种分解淀粉的酶恐怕会影响产品的口感。

For example, they say it might soften cereals and cause corn chips to lose their satisfying crunch.
譬如说，这种酶可能会使谷物软化，令玉米片丧失其令人满足的咀嚼感。

Mary Waters heads one of those food groups, the North American Millers' Association. 
玛丽·沃特斯是其中一家食品组织“北美磨坊商协会”的负责人。

She says even a small amount of the maize could cause problems if it mixes with corn used to make food.
她表示，即便只有少量的转基因玉米跟用作食材的玉米混合，也会引起问题。

It would only take one kernel in 10,000 to affect food processing.
只需万分之一的玉米粒，食品加工就会受到影响。

Snack foods made with corn are a six-billion-dollar industry in the United States.
在美国，含有玉米的快餐食品产业价值60亿美元。

In 2001, genetically modified corn made by Syngenta was found in the food supply chain without approval. 
2001年，先正达公司生产的转基因玉米在没有得到批准的情况下出现在食品供应环节，

Syngenta paid a fine to the government.
公司因此被政府罚款。

Jim McCarthy, president of the Snack Food Association, says the incident caused no health problems.
快餐食品联合会主席吉姆·麦卡锡称，该事件没有造成健康问题。

But it did cause major disruptions in the availability of food-grade corn. 
但这确实扰乱了食用玉米的供应。

So we do think this will have a major impact. 
所以我们确实觉得这会造成比较大的影响，

And we're urging Syngenta to rethink this.
因此敦促先正达公司再考虑考虑。

Syngenta says it will take measures to keep the new maize out of the food supply. 
先正达公司称，他们将采取措施防止新型玉米流入食品供应环节。

Jack Bernens says the company will sell seeds only to farmers who take their crops to nearby ethanol processing plants. 
杰克·伯尼斯表示，公司会只将玉米种子出售给那些将玉米卖给邻近的乙醇加工厂的农民。

He says the company will not sell seed in areas where food makers get their maize.
公司不能在那些食品制造者会收购玉米的地区出售种子。

Mr. Bernens says the company has done a lot of research and found that the risk from a few kernels is overstated. 
伯尼斯称，公司已经进行了大量的研究，发现人们夸大了那些玉米粒带来的风险。

The food industry groups object to conditions placed on companies that want to study that research. 
食品行业组织反对为那些想要进行转基因研究的公司提供条件。

Syngenta says it has trade secrets to protect.
公司则称他们要保护贸易机密。