The town sits smack in the middle of a USDA food desert stretching miles in every direction.

无论从哪个方向来看，该镇都恰好坐落于 USDA 所定义的食品沙漠范围之内。

This is because in America, the definition of a food desert is any census area where at least 20% of inhabitants are below the poverty line and 33% live more than a mile from a supermarket.

这是因为在美国，任何普查区中，只要其20%以下的居民低于贫困线，33%的居民于距离超市一英里之外居住，那么该地区即被定义为食品沙漠。

They have camels, sheep and other animals. These animals depend on the desert plants for their food and do not need much water.

他们有骆驼、绵羊和其他动物。这些动物以沙漠植物为食，不需要太多的水。

There were so many of them, consuming so much food and fuel and water, that they could hardly make a major move across the desert.

他们数量巨大，必然要消耗大量的食物、燃料和水，并且对他们来说，移动到沙漠的另一端更是难上加难。