We don’t usually think about fruit being that expensive. In fact， we cantypically find a banana for less than a dollar in most places！

我們通常不會想到水果會那么貴。事實(shí)上，我們在大多數(shù)地方都能找到一根不到一美元的香蕉！

Fruit is meant to be a good part of a balanced diet， so even if youusually spend a few bucks more on your favorite fruit， at least it’s for aworthy cause.

水果是均衡飲食的重要組成部分，所以即使你經(jīng)常在你最喜歡的水果上多花幾塊錢，至少它是有價值的。

Even something like pineapples， a tropical1 fruit which can only begrown in certain climates， are still easy to find almost anywhere. Thanks to mass2 production， even after shipping costs they still won’t end up being toocostly. But what if I told you there was a certain type of pineapple that isworth thousands of dollars？

甚至像菠蘿這種只能在特定氣候條件下生長的熱帶水果，在幾乎任何地方都很容易找到。由于它是大規(guī)模生產(chǎn)的，即使扣除運(yùn)輸成本，它們最終也不會太貴。但如果我告訴你有一種菠蘿值幾千美元呢？

To be fair， that wouldn’t be too far off from how things were a fewcenturies ago.

確切地說，這與幾個世紀(jì)前的情況相差無幾。

Looking into the past

回顧過去

For better understanding， let’s take a step back in time！

為了更好地理解這一事實(shí)，讓我們回到過去吧！

In the 1700’s， pineapples used to be a status3 symbol of wealth.

在18世紀(jì)，菠蘿曾是財富地位的象征。

This was because they weren’t grown in Europe， so when world explorersbrought back this rare and exotic4 new fruit， supply5 was low and demand6 washigh. In those days， one pineapple would cost today’s equivalent to $8，000 dollars！

這是因?yàn)闅W洲并不種植菠蘿，所以當(dāng)世界探險家們帶回這種稀有而奇異的新水果時，它變得供不應(yīng)求。那時候，一個菠蘿的價值相當(dāng)于今天的八千美元！

Of course， pineapples are now easily bought， even by us common people， andthe symbol is gone.

當(dāng)然，現(xiàn)在即使是我們普通人也很容易買到菠蘿，因而這個象征已經(jīng)消失了。

However， there are still a few pineapples with a high price tag on them.

然而，仍然有一些菠蘿上貼著昂貴的標(biāo)價。

At the Lost Gardens of Heligan in the United Kingdom， you’ll find pineapples grown in mud structures heated with rotting7 manure8. But don’t worry—the pineapples never actually come into contact with the manure.

在英國的海利根失落花園，你會發(fā)現(xiàn)菠蘿生長在和腐爛肥料一起加熱的泥質(zhì)建筑中。但別擔(dān)心——菠蘿從來沒有真正接觸到肥料。

The strange strategies used here are reflective of older techniques in order togrow this tropical fruit in a colder climate.

這里使用的奇怪策略反映了在較冷氣候下種植這種熱帶水果的古老技術(shù)。

In fact， the structure these rare pineapples are grown in was unearthed in 1991and renovated just two years later to a working state.

事實(shí)上，種植這些珍稀菠蘿的建筑是1991 年出土的，僅僅兩年就被 修復(fù)到了可使用的狀態(tài)。

How much does it cost to grow these pineapples？

種植這些菠蘿要花多少錢？

Well technically， these special pineapples aren’t even on the market—sothey’re priceless. However with the manpower over the course of the 2 years ittakes to grow a pineapple， the cost to make each pineapple is $1，300. So if they’renot for sale， where do they go？

從技術(shù)上講，這些特別的菠蘿根本不在市場上出售，所以它們是無價的。然而，種植一個菠蘿需要兩年的人力，每個菠蘿的成本是1300美元。如果它們不出售，它們會去哪里？

The successfully grown pineapples go right back to the staff who grew them asan appreciation for growing them in the first place. But， one of the pineapples hasbeen given away.

成功種植的菠蘿首先直接回到種植菠蘿的員工那里，作為對他們種植菠蘿的一種感激。但是，其中一個菠蘿被送人了。

The second pineapple ever grown in the Lost Gardens was gifted to QueenElizabeth II in honor of her 50th wedding anniversary.

在英國女王伊麗莎白二世結(jié)婚50周年紀(jì)念日之際，英國失落花園中種植的第二個菠蘿被贈送給了她。

If one of these pineapples were to go up for auction or sale， due to the rarity，ancient technique， time spent growing， and manual labor， these pineapples areworth $16，000！

如果這些菠蘿中有一個被拿去拍賣或出售，由于其稀有性、古老的工藝、栽培的時間和體力勞動，這種菠蘿價值16000美元！

Although you’ll probably never be able to taste one， staff describe the taste as “deliciously sweet， not stringy9， and with an explosive10 flavor.”

雖然你可能永遠(yuǎn)也嘗不到這種味道，但工作人員形容這種味道“香甜可口，不粘膩，而且有爆炸性的美味?！?/p>

（英語原文選自：thefactsite.com）