What is the author's reason for writing this text? to persuade the reader to follow a certain diet to convince the reader to travel to Shihr to inform the reader about the products and foods that a region offers to entertain the reader with stories about what the author has bought

C). To inform the reader about the products and foods that a region offers.

Explanation:

As per the question, the author's key reason for writing the given excerpt from 'The Travels of Marco Polo' is 'to inform the reader about the products and foods that a region offers.' The descriptions of 'white incense, dates, rice grain, plentiful and abundant use of fish, consists of rice, meat, and fish' inform the readers about the food items that were commonly used in the region and how these food items and the products had a great impact on the economic, domestic, and social lives of people living there. Thus, option C is the correct answer.