English Refresher

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English Refresher · CEFR C1 · Unit 4

The Future of Food

Talk about lab-grown meat, vertical farming and sustainability — and learn to weigh an innovation's upsides against its downsides. Practice, check your answers instantly, and study the flashcards.

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1
Speaking

Food & the Future

What to do: Work in pairs or small groups. Discuss the questions and try to use the evaluative phrases below. There is no score — speak, listen, and weigh both sides.
Audio 1Listen to an example
Listen to someone weigh up insect protein — notice the upside/downside language — then share your own view.

Talk about it

  • What's the most unusual food you've ever tried? Would you do it again?
  • How do you think food will change in the next 50 years — and which change worries you most?
  • Would you change your diet to help the planet? Weigh the upside against the cost before deciding.
Speculate and evaluate with these:
One possible outcome might be…The upside / downside is…On balance…… could / might…While this might sound extreme…the benefits outweigh…
Featured Reading

Would You Eat a Lab-Grown Burger?

Read the full interactive essay and do the comprehension quiz before you debate.

Read it →
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Reading

Meat Without the Animal

What to do: Read this short extract from the unit essay. Then answer the questions and tap Check Answers. (Read the full article using the link above!)

It sounds like science fiction, but it's already on sale in a handful of countries: real meat grown from animal cells in a tank, without raising or slaughtering a single animal. Its supporters make a bold promise — the same burger with a tiny fraction of the land, water and emissions, and a far smaller carbon footprint.

So why isn't it everywhere? Two reasons. Right now it is extremely expensive to produce, and many people simply find the idea off-putting. The science may be sound; the feelings are real too.

1. Lab-grown meat is made by growing animal ______, with no animal raised or killed.
2. Its biggest promised benefit is a much smaller carbon ______.
3. What is one major obstacle the writer names?
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Listening

Would You Try It?

What to do: Listen two times. Then complete the sentences and answer the questions. Notice how the speakers weigh the pros and cons.
Audio 2Dan and Yuki discuss lab-grown meat

Dan: Apparently you can now buy chicken grown from cells, no farm involved. Honestly? I'd try it.

Yuki: Really? I'm not sure. The upside is clear — it could slash emissions. But it feels so processed.

Dan: That's fair. Although, to be fair, normal supermarket meat isn't exactly natural either.

Yuki: True. I suppose my real worry is the cost. Right now it's incredibly expensive to make.

Dan: For now. But the price could fall fast if it scales up. On balance, I think the benefits outweigh the downsides.

Yuki: Maybe. I'd want to see the regulation sorted out first, though.

1. Dan says you can now buy chicken grown from ______, with no farm.
2. Yuki agrees the upside is clear: it could slash ______.
3. Yuki's real worry is the high ______ of making it.
4. What is Dan's overall verdict?
5. What would Yuki want first?
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Vocabulary

The Right Word

What to do: Complete each sentence with a term from the unit. Spelling counts. Tap Check Answers when you're done.
1. Growing crops in stacked layers indoors, often in cities, is ______ ______ (two words).
2. The total greenhouse gases caused by a product is its carbon ______.
3. Plant- or insect-based substitutes for meat are called ______ ______ (two words).
4. Making sure everyone has reliable access to enough food is ______ ______ (two words).
5. Farming that restores soil and ecosystems is ______ ______ (two words).
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Register

Blunt or Balanced?

What to do: The same idea can sound blunt or balanced. Decide whether each statement is overstated or evaluative. Tap a card to move it (first box, then second box, then back), then tap Check Answers.
Blunt / Overstated
Balanced / Evaluative
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Structure

Build the Sentence

What to do: Tap the chunks in the correct order to build an advanced sentence (an evaluation and a cleft). Tap a chunk in your answer to send it back. Then tap Check Answers.

1. A balanced verdict:

2. A cleft sentence (for emphasis):

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Writing

A Balanced Verdict

What to do: Write 150–200 words on one prompt below. Weigh at least one upside and one downside before you commit to a verdict. There is no automatic score; use the checklist.

Choose a prompt

  • "Would you support the sale of lab-grown meat in your country? Why or why not?"
  • "Should we change our diets to help the planet?"
  • Write a short review of a futuristic restaurant serving only lab-grown or insect-based food.
Model opening: "I'll admit my first reaction to lab-grown meat was a slight shudder — there's something about the word 'lab' next to the word 'dinner'. And yet, the more I weigh it up, the harder that instinct is to defend. The upside is enormous: a fraction of the land, water and emissions of conventional farming. The downside — cost, regulation, and our discomfort — is real but, on balance, surmountable."
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Vocabulary

Flashcards

What to do: Tap a card to reveal the meaning and an example. These are the key terms for this unit and the reading.
sustainabilitynountap to reveal
using resources without using them up for the future"Sustainability is now central to food policy."
food securitynountap to reveal
reliable access for everyone to enough safe food"Climate change threatens food security."
lab-grown meatnountap to reveal
real meat grown from animal cells, not from an animal"Lab-grown meat needs no slaughter."
alternative proteinnountap to reveal
plant- or insect-based substitutes for meat"Alternative protein is a fast-growing market."
vertical farmingnountap to reveal
growing crops in stacked layers indoors"Vertical farming saves land and water."
carbon footprintnountap to reveal
the total greenhouse gases something causes"Beef has a large carbon footprint."
biotechnologynountap to reveal
using living systems to make products or processes"Biotechnology drives much of future food."
genetic modificationnountap to reveal
changing an organism's genes (e.g. of a crop)"Genetic modification can raise crop yields."
agri-technountap to reveal
technology used to improve farming"Drones and sensors are part of agri-tech."
regenerative agriculturenountap to reveal
farming that restores soil and ecosystems"Regenerative agriculture rebuilds healthy soil."

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