[00:00.00]From VOA Learning English, [00:03.70]this is the Agricultural Report. [00:06.89]Afghan farmers have another big harvest this year, [00:11.21]but officials at the United Nations [00:14.36]and around the world are not celebrating. [00:18.24]The crop is opium, [00:20.53]farmers have been busy harvest their opium poppies. [00:25.16]Farmer Faiz Mohammed in Helmand province [00:29.29]makes no apologies. [00:31.44]"We are the poorest people in this area. [00:34.58]If we don't cultivate poppies [00:35.93]we can't feed ourselves and our family. [00:38.12]We have tried to cultivate corn and wheat, [00:40.76]but that is too cheap, doesn't bring a good income. [00:43.24]And poppy crops bring good money." [00:45.63]The riches promised by opuim stands in contrast, [00:50.57]to the rest of the country's struggling economy. [00:54.40]Farmer Harie Abudola says [00:58.40]profits are driving the opium production, [01:01.39]not pressure from the Taliban. [01:04.08]"The Taliban have no influence here. [01:06.28]The farmers themselves grow poppies because, [01:08.06]compared to the price of wheat, [01:09.00]there is a huge difference. [01:10.01]For instance, [01:10.75]we sell four kilograms of corn for 100 Afghanis [$1.89 USD] [01:12.65]but poppies bring 2000-5000 Afghanis [$37.80-$94.57 USD]. [01:15.58]This is for the benefit of the farmers, [01:17.03]we see there is a huge difference in the price." [01:18.82]A report by the United Nations Office [01:22.33]on Drugs and Crime warns that Afghanistan [01:26.36]could supply as much as 90% of the world's heroin, [01:31.84]UN official Jean-Luc Lemahieu calls it a sign of failure. [01:38.01]"We have seen enormous inflow in this country [01:41.19]over the last decades, [01:42.39]and with regards to the drug control situation, [01:44.88]we still see increases of the opium cultivation, [01:47.92]so we cannot say in any way, based on the facts, [01:51.07]that we have succeeded. We have failed." [01:53.20]And he warns that farmers [01:55.44]are not the only ones becoming dependent on opium. [02:00.41]"It is one of the biggest diseases this country [02:02.45]is facing at this moment - one million addicts. [02:05.24]It is an enormous health problem. Who will pay for that?" [02:08.52]That question is far from that thoughts of opium farmers, [02:12.86]who say they have no other way to feed their families. [02:17.59]The report released last week says opium production [02:23.86]is especially high in the most unstable areas of Afghanistan. [02:29.29]These are areas where the surge increase in American troops, [02:34.91]helped beat back Taliban influence. [02:38.67]The report says insurgents use the insecurity in those areas, [02:45.12]especially Helmand and Kandahar provinces. To win popular support, [02:52.14]the insurgents also assisted opium farmers with their crops. [02:57.96]The UN says poor weather and crop disease lead to a reduction [03:04.63]in the supply of opium last year. [03:07.52]That reduction meant higher price. [03:11.35]The report notes that the higher price of opium, [03:15.48]makes it an even more attractive crop to grow now. [03:20.17]The UN says this is the third year in a row [03:25.69]that opium poppy growing has increased in Afghanistan. [03:31.07]This follows gains made by the government, [03:34.86]in years of efforts to reduce the nation's share of the drug trade. [03:40.58]And that's the Agricultural Report from VOA Learning English. [03:46.70]You can read, listen and learn English with more stories [03:52.08]about agriculture at the voalearningenglish website. [03:58.26]I am Karen Laget.

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