Wanna shrink that water footprint? Take a look at the food you’re eating. Listen up:
Here’s some food for thought: More than 90 percent of our water footprint relates to water usage in agriculture—which means the food we eat is our biggest use of water.
Food needs to drink, too… (via Dwight Burdette)
Fresh water comprises just 2.5 percent of the world’s supply, so conservation is critical. But to be truly water-wise, we need to look less at our plumbing, and more at our plates.
According to Arjen Hoekstra, Chair of the Department of Water Management at the University of Twente in the Netherlands, “92 percent of the water footprint of humanity relates to water usage in agriculture.”
He illuminates another fact invisible to most: Making our meat, dairy, fruits, veggies, and clothes demands much more water than flushing and brushing.
For example, it takes over a thousand gallons of water to produce a single gallon of coffee, and over 1,800 for a pound of beef.
Get schooled:
- Get the facts about humanity’s water footprint from this PNAS paper by Arjen Hoekstra and Mesfin Mekonnen
- Learn more about “the water footprint of farm animal products” from this Ecosystems paper by Hoekstra and Mekonnen
- Check out this network dedicated to decreasing our water footprint founded by Arjen Hoekstra
The fine print:
- This segment was produced in partnership with Cornell’s Atkinson Center for a Sustainable Future
