離開
進入《中英對照讀新聞》Cow dung patties selling like hot cakes online in India 牛糞餅在印度網路熱賣
◎管淑平
With the holiday season in full swing, Indians are flocking to the online marketplace in droves. But there’s one unusual item flying off the virtual shelves：Online retailers say cow dung patties are selling like hot cakes.
在節日慶典旺季，印度人蜂擁上網路賣場。但在網路虛擬商場中有一樣不尋常的東西熱賣：網路零售商說，牛糞餅現在正搶手。
The patties _ cow poop mixed with hay and dried in the sun, made mainly by women in rural areas and used to fuel fires _ have long been available in India’s villages. But online retailers including Amazon and eBay are now reaching out to the country’s ever-increasing urban population.
這些由牛糞混合乾草並在太陽下曬乾的塊狀物，主要由鄉村地區的婦女製作，被當作燃料生火，長期以來存在於印度鄉村。但包括亞馬遜、電子海灣等網路零售商，正將觸角伸向這個國家日漸成長的都市人口。
Some retailers say they’re offering discounts for large orders. Some customers are asking for gift wrapping.
某些零售商說，他們提供大量訂購折扣。有些客戶要求禮品包裝。
"Cow dung cakes have been listed by multiple sellers on our platform since October and we have received several customer orders’’ since then, said Madhavi Kochar, an Amazon India spokeswoman.
「10月起，我們平台上多個賣家推出牛糞餅販售，此後我們也接獲好幾筆客戶訂單。」印度亞馬遜公司發言人柯查說。
The orders come mostly from cities where it would be difficult to buy dung cakes, she said.
這些訂單大多來自難以買到牛糞餅的城市，她說。
In India, where Hindus have long worshipped cows as sacred, cow dung cakes have been used for centuries for fires, whether for heating, cooking or Hindu rituals. Across rural India, piles of drying cow dung are ubiquitous. （AP）
在印度，印度人向來視牛為神聖的動物崇拜，牛糞餅被用來生火已有好幾世紀之久，不論是為了取暖、烹煮或印度人的傳統習俗。在印度鄉下普遍可見一堆堆曬乾的牛糞。（美聯社）
新聞辭典：
to be in full swing：片語，處於正熱烈、巔峰之際，正起勁。例句：Powerball fever is in full swing as the jackpot hits $1.5 billion.（由於頭彩高達15億美元，威力球熱潮正炙。）
to sell like hotcakes, to fly off the shelf：片語，均為暢銷、熱賣之意。例句：Our new products sell like hotcakes in emerging markets.（我們的新產品在新興市場賣得很好。）
