美国面临酒精短缺，清洁、消毒产品被一扫而空

Americans are finding themselves with a never-before-seen shortage of paper and cleaning products, such as disinfectants and hand sanitizers.

美国正面临未曾有过的纸巾、消毒液、洗手液等清洁产品短缺。

Traditional cleaning products simply cannot be found at supermarkets across the country. Store owners say they do not know when new shipments will arrive.

全国超时货架上的传统清洁产品已被一扫而空。商家表示，尚无新到货日期。

Washing hands with soap and using household cleaning products may help with personal protection against the coronavirus. Americans often turn to disinfectant liquid or wipes for use outside the home, in vehicles and public spaces.

用肥皂洗手和使用家庭清洁产品可能有助于个人预防病毒。而美国人通常会选择在车内、公共场所等居家之外的场所使用消毒液或消毒湿巾。

Wipes are necessary for people required to work outside the home, such as those employed by supermarkets, hospitals or drug stores. But there appears to be little chance of sanitizers returning to stores in large enough amounts to be useful.

对于在超市、医院、药店工作的员工而言，消毒湿巾是他们在外工作的必需品。然而就目前而言，市场上消毒剂的供给几乎不可能满足市场需求。

VOA spoke with a leading U.S. manufacturer of health and personal cleaning products to explain the shortage.

美国之音采访了美国一家健康和个人清洁产品龙头制造商来解释这种短缺现象。

"The... demand for hand sanitizers was never expected by anyone in the industry, and for that reason, none of the players in the market were prepared," notes Rakesh Tammabattula. He serves as Chief Executive Officer of QYK Brands. The California based company owns businesses such as Dr. J's Natural and Glowyy hand sanitizer.

拉凯什探马巴图拉指出，行业从未想到市场会对洗手液有这么大的需求，市场并没有对此做好充足的准备。他是QYK品牌的首席执行官。这家总部位于加州的公司拥有Dr. J's Natural和Glowyy洗手液等产品。

Tammabattula said that no one could have expected the sudden demand, and importance, of sanitizers. He told VOA that the unexpectedly high demand has caused severe shortages of some raw, unprocessed materials like pure alcohol. Most sanitizers are made of pure alcohol mixed with oils or gelling substances.

探马巴图拉表示，没人有预期该需求激增，尤其是洗手液。他告诉美国之音，未曾预料的高需求导致纯酒精等原材料及未加工材料的短缺。大多数洗手液是由纯酒精与油或胶凝物质混合而成。

In the past, manufacturers only bought as much alcohol as they needed because of its chemical properties. Now, there is not enough to meet the increased demand.

以往，制造商只允许购买化工产品所需的量的酒精。但如今，随着需求激增已远远难以满足。

There is also a shortage of plastic for bottles.

塑料瓶的供给也出现了短缺现象。

The increasing demands have caused the prices of alcohol and other ingredients to go up about 200 percent, Tammabattula said. He added that the timelines of production have been extended to six to eight weeks. Before the pandemic, it was two or three weeks. He noted that his company will be completely out of alcohol in two weeks.

需求激增已导致酒精和其他原料价格上涨200%左右。探马巴图拉补充到，生产时间已延长6只8周。而在大流行之前，仅为2到3周。而他所在的公司将在两周后面临酒精耗尽的局面。

The shortage of normal ingredients for sanitizers has led to searches for substitute ingredients. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently eased its rules to let manufacturers use ethanol alcohol for hand sanitizers during the shortage. The health crisis has sent the prices of ethanol sharply lower, hurting U.S. farmers and ethanol industries that make alcohol from corn. The new FDA rule could help both farmers and ethanol producers.

常用成分的供给短缺导致商家开始寻找替代成分。美国食品药品监督局最近降低了管制等级，原材料短缺期间内，允许生产商使用工业酒精生产洗手液。卫生危机导致乙醇价格暴跌，损害了美国农民和用玉米生产乙醇的乙醇工业。FDA的新规定可能对农民和乙醇生产商都有帮助。

Some distilleries have turned to producing sanitizers from their own alcohol to help fight the shortage. One whisky distillery in Atlanta, Georgia, said it is giving away free hand sanitizers at its factory.

一些酿酒厂也将库存的酒精转投生产洗手液，以应对市场短缺。乔治亚州亚特兰大市的一家威士忌酒厂表示，他们的工厂将免费提供洗手液。

Some people are creating their own sanitizers with oils or lemons, but there is no evidence they work.

也有人居家将油和柠檬混合自制洗手液，但暂无证实该有效性。

Experts advise against homemade sanitizers, saying these products could be harmful or useless. A real sanitizer should have at least 60 percent alcohol, they note.

专家建议请勿居家自制洗手液，自制过程存在风险且产品可能无效。有效的洗手液应确保至少酒精含量为60%以上。

The shortage of cleaning products has led many sellers to advertise wipes, sanitizers, air purifiers and other products online. Security experts have advised people to avoid buying them since many are useless or will never arrive.

清洁产品的短缺导致许多卖家在网上宣传抹布、消毒剂、空气净化器和其他产品。安全专家建议群众无需购买此类商品，因为当中许多产品并无效用或因疫情无法送达。

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has the best advice: Wash your hands with soap and hot water as often as possible.

美国疾控防护中心给出了最佳的建议：勤用肥皂水和热水洗手。

编译：By Aslan, April 9, 2020