China's appetite for lobsters² is continuing to rise, driving imports from the US to a historic high.

中国人对龙虾的需求正持续增长，推动从美国进口的龙虾总量创下历史新高。

Most Chinese had barely heard of American lobsters until 2010, when the value of imports jumped 250% to about $7.4m.

2010年，中国从美国进口龙虾的价值额飙升250%，达到740万美元左右。而此前，大部分中国人对美国龙虾几乎闻所未闻。

Last year, China imported more than $108m worth of lobsters from the US, a 14-fold jump from 2010, and recorded a historic high.

去年，中国从美国进口了价值逾1.08亿美元的龙虾，较2010年增长14倍，创历史新高。

Stephanie Nadeau, who owns a lobster¹ company in Maine, said that she believes one of the factors driving the consumption of lobsters in China seems to be the growth of the country's middle class.

缅因州一家龙虾公司的老板斯蒂芬尼·拿度表示，她认为推动中国龙虾消费飙升的因素之一似乎是中国中产阶层的壮大。

Also, American lobsters tend to be cheaper in China than other seafood³, such as geoduck clams⁴ and spiny⁵ lobsters, Nadeau added.

此外，与象拔蚌、大螯虾等其他海鲜相比，美国龙虾在中国的价格往往更便宜。

In the new year, China's consumption of lobsters has not shown a slowdown. The US exported 1.7m pounds of lobsters to China in January, with a value of $14m.

在新的一年，中国的龙虾消费丝毫没有减速迹象。今年1月，美国对中国的龙虾出口量达到170万磅，出口额达到1400万美元。