Researchers at the University of British Columbia in Canada have found that humans grew cacao trees and used cacao starting around 5,300 years ago. But the new discovery shows people grew cacao trees about 1,500 years earlier than what was known before. The researchers found evidence of cacao’s use at an old village in the highlands of southeastern Ecuador. Time has had little influence on the village, so they were able to find a lot of evidence of the use of cacao after examining the remains of very old objects at the Santa Ana-La Florida archaeological site.

The researchers found very small pieces from the cacao tree in the remains of containers and other objects. They also found a substance in the cacao tree but not in is wild relatives. This suggests that humans grew the tree for food purposes.

But thousands of years ago, cacao was used to make drinks. The objects on which cacao was found suggest a lot about how people used the substance at that time. They clearly drank it. There is no decided history of indigenous populations in South or Central America using cacao to make chocolate the way people do now. By the time Spanish explorers arrived in Central America in the late 1400s, people were using it to make hot and cold chocolate drinks with spices. By the 1580s, Spain began buying cacao from abroad and spreading it to other European countries. By the 1800s, technology developed in the Netherlands made it possible to turn cacao into a solid chocolate product.

Laiskonis, who teaches chocolate-making classes at the Institute of Culinary Education, introduces his students to the history of chocolate. He tells his students, for example, about a recipe from the 1600s that mixed Mayan and Aztec types of cacao drinks with European influences. Laiskonis said chocolate is “something that’s always been changing.”

Milk plays an important role in a child’s healthy growth, from a breastfed (母乳喂养的) baby to a teenager putting milk into a drink. 【小题1】.

Cow’s milk is naturally rich in protein (蛋白质) and calcium (钙). It also contains vitamin D, which is strengthened during the process of milk production. 【小题2】. Since these are important for kids’ growth and development, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) suggests that younger kids drink up to 2 cups of milk a day and older kids drink 3.

【小题3】. Foods made from cow’s milk, like yogurt and cheese, are also good options. Besides, non-milk foods, if they are also rich in protein, calcium and vitamin A and D, can help satisfy what kids’ body development needs, too. However, it doesn’t mean that milk can be completely replaced unless kids are breastfed. 【小题4】.

The point is that, in addition to milk, kids also need to eat some other foods that are rich in a variety of nutrients (营养). 【小题5】, but also make sure that the body system works fine. It’s wise to take milk, but we’d better make the diet diverse.

One research suggests that as much as 25% of apples, 20% of onions and 13% of potatoes grown in the UK are destroyed because they don’t look right. This means that producers’ efforts to meet stringent specifications from buyers can lead to perfectly eatable produce being thrown away before it even leaves the farm simply because of how it looks.

In recent years there has been a growing trend of selling such “ugly” fruit and vegetables, both by major supermarket chains, as well as special retailers(零售商)that sell boxes of such produce. And research has shown that 87% of people say they would eat imperfect fruit and vegetables if they were available. But other research indicates consumers can still be picky and difficult to predict. One study showed consumers are likely to throw away an apple with a spot, but would eat a bent cucumber.

So how can producers and retailers boost the amount of non-standard fruit and help that not only reaches our shelves, but also our plates? Our recent research suggests a specific channel for selling ugly produce would increase profits for growers, lower prices for consumers and boost overall demand for produce. Our research also shows that selling the ugly produce in this way is likely to increase total demand for fruit and vegetables, while also decreasing on-farm loss.

However, the growing market for ugly fruit and vegetables could be an economic threat to traditional retailers. It encourages new businesses into the market and could also limit the availability of “regular” produce because growers could become less stringent about ensuring produce meets traditional outside standards.

But there is a way for traditional retailers to add ugly produce into their product offerings alongside other produce without affecting their profits. By building on existing consumer awareness of the environmental benefits of ugly food, they could also compete in this growing market. This would possibly lead to less food waste and shortages.