The hidden water in meat, phones, and clothes.
We all know that water is essential for human survival. Without it, we would, quite frankly, cease to exist. Yet, we take water for granted and usually do not pay much attention to it.
Think about it.
Do we realize just how much water it takes to grow the food you eat, the clothes you wear, or raise the animals that become your dinner?
It can be overwhelming to think of every single product we use daily, so let’s take a look at the water footprint of just three everyday consumer products: meat, phones, and clothes.
(The water footprint of a product is the total amount of water required for every stage of production.)
- Meat
In a world filled with people concerned about what we eat, there is one thing most people overlook- the vast amount of water that goes into producing your meat.
Meat production is one of the least efficient uses of water on the planet.
Water required to produce one pound (1 lb. or 0.45kg) of:
- Beef = 2000 gallons of water (7570 liters)
- Pork = 576 gallons of water (2180 liters)
- Chicken = 468 gallons of water (1840 liters)
That’s a LOT of water, yikes.
2. Smartphones
Smartphones have become such an integral part of our lives that we can barely imagine how we got by without them. But here is a surefire way to put your cravings for mobile devices in perspective — consider their water impact.
A single smartphone requires about 18m2 of land and almost 13,000 liters of water! To put things in perspective, around 3.9 billion smartphones were in use as of 2020, representing a significant amount of water use.
Perhaps it’s best if you don’t switch to the new iPhone right away.
3. Clothing and fashion apparel
Like most of us know, the fashion industry is guilty of some serious crimes against the planet. According to estimates, the fashion industry currently uses around 79 billion cubic meters of water per year, which is 2 percent of all freshwater extraction globally.
It takes on average 10,000 liters of water to cultivate just one kilogram of raw cotton. So, that means-
A cotton shirt (250g)= 2500 liters.
A pair of jeans (800g)= 8000 liters.
Who knew fashion had such a “price”?
What does that mean for all of us?
Think about the things you use every day; your alarm clock, the shoes on your feet, packaging for that soda or water you buy, or the plastic tubs of yogurt you eat. All of these products use materials and processes that require water to produce. The total amount of water they use is staggering, as we saw earlier.
We are all responsible for the amount of water we consume, and the choices we make matter. Whether it’s the amount of water it takes to wash your clothes or the water used in making your favorite snacks, all these water uses add up in a big way.
When you look at your water footprint, don’t think about what you can’t do. Be creative and think about what you could do — and the vital part is to act!
Lastly, don’t forget- be mindful of your consumption.
Conserve what you can.
