Answer:
A. Wild sugar cane was used for roofing houses and fencing gardens.
B. The demand for sugar increased because sugar became a vital ingredients in all kinds of things.
C. The future of sugar industry came under threat due to:
1. The sugar cane plant became weaker and prone to disease.
2. The plants usually wither and die despite farmers' effort to save them.
D. The scientists working in Barbados were able to create a stronger commercial species of sugar cane by experimenting with breeding programmes and mixing genes of wild sugar cane species.
E. The single gene identified by the scientists in France is important to the health of the plant because of the plant's ability to resist rust.
F. Countries that consumed more than 40 kilos are: (i) Brazil (ii) Mexico Australia (iii) European Union
G. Four points that show that the future of sugar cane looks positive:
1. There is available sugar cane gene that can withstand and resist rust.
2. Sugar cane plants are becoming much more vigorous, thereby enabling supply of sugar.
3. Scientists are working tirelessly to discover stronger genes.
4. There are still species yet to be discovered which when discovered will improve the supply of sugar.
Explanation:
From the excerpt, it's clear that people started using the wild sugar canes for roofing and fencing. But soon, sugar cane became vital to human as it became vital ingredients in confectioneries and other things. Diseases started attacking the plant; scientists rose up to the challenge to find species that resist diseases. A team in France discovered a particular species that was resistant to rust.
The sugar industry looks positive because more species are yet to be discovered which will improve supply of sugar cane.
