From the loss of wildlife to rising sea levels, we’re all well aware of the problems that climate change could cause. But while it may seem like such issues won’t affect most of us directly, it looks like future generations could grow up without something that many of us now take for granted: chocolate.

According to an essay published by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, changes of the climate in the areas that produce cacao—the plant from which chocolate is produced—may mean that it will soon become extinct.

Most of the world’s cacao grows in countries close to the equator (赤道), with over half of it growing in the African nations of Ghana and Ivory Coast. It’s predicted that by 2050, climate change will have sped up the rate at which temperatures in these countries rise, making it extremely difficult for cacao to grow there. The problem doesn’t lie in increasing heat, but in lower humidity (湿度), as it’s believed that rainfall will stay at the same level if the temperature rises.

“In other words, as higher temperatures squeeze more water out of soil and plants, it’s unlikely that rainfall will increase enough to offset the moisture loss,” wrote Michon Scott, the essay’s author.

To help fight this problem, researchers from Berkeley University in the US are working on changing the DNA of cacao plants to allow them to survive in dryer conditons by using gene (基因) editing technology, according to US News. In the meantime, Mars, one of the world’s biggest companies of chocolate products, announced that it would spend 1 billion dollars helping reduce the effects of climate change.

“This is a world issue, and it requires everyone to work together,” Mars spokesperson Barry Parkin told Business Insider.

The message here is that if we all do our part, we may be able to prevent some of the worst influences of climate change. Or if we’re unlucky, chocolate will become a thing of the past.

【小题1】What will make it hard for cacao to survive around the equator in the future?

A．The increasing heat.	B．The higher humidity.
C．The moisture loss in the soil.	D．The decrease of rainfall.

【小题2】What does the underlined word “offset” in Paragraph 4 probably mean?

A．Make up.

B．Add up.

C．Dry up.

D．Use up.

【小题3】What will Mars do to help cacao survive?

A．It will work hard to plant cacao in greenhouses.

B．It will use the gene editing technology to plant cacao.

C．It will develop cacao that can survive in dryer conditions.

D．It will give financial support to help fight climate change.

【小题4】What is this article mainly about?

A．Some new research and findings about growing cacao.

B．The influence that cacao plants have on climate change.

C．Problems cacao plants could face and the possible solutions.

D．The significance of working together to fight climate change.