Abstract
Global water scarcity is a severe threat facing humanity today and it is expected to become even more alarming in the future. Agriculture is the biggest user of freshwater and large volumes of embedded virtual water in food products are traded through the global food system annually. Although Finland has vast water resources, it imports large quantities of virtual water – partly from countries suffering from water scarcity. In this article, we present a novel combination of the virtual water study together with an analysis of the potential reallocation of the outsourced production of rice, soybeans and rapeseed, from the water resource-efficiency point of view. To assess how Finland could reduce the outsourced water consumption by these three crops, we evaluated Finland’s potential to replace their imports with local comparable products: domestic barley and oats, field peas and faba beans, and rapeseed, respectively. This replacement would both potentially ease the global pressure on already stressed regions and increase the agricultural diversity of the local agricultural systems. We found that by replacing the imports of the selected crops, considering the realistic potential in Finland, up to 16% of the blue water and almost 30% of the green water embedded in crop imports could be reduced. Although Finland is a minor player in the global food markets, our study presents a highly relevant case of how an industrialized country, with a relatively small population, can contribute to the sustainability of food systems globally.
Highlights
Globalization and the intensification of the international trade in food has increased the spatial separation of consumption from production (Porkka et al, 2013; Kastner et al, 2014)
Around a quarter of food produced for human consumption is traded internationally (D’Odorico et al, 2014), approximately one-fifth of the global virtual water relates to production for exports (Hoekstra and Mekonnen, 2012) and around 80% of the global population live in net-importing countries (Porkka et al, 2013)
Globalization has led to an increase in the outsourcing of resources such as land or water used in agricultural production as consumers withdraw limited resources from distant locations (Steen-Olsen et al, 2012; Meyfroidt et al, 2013)
Summary
Globalization and the intensification of the international trade in food has increased the spatial separation of consumption from production (Porkka et al, 2013; Kastner et al, 2014). Around a quarter of food produced for human consumption is traded internationally (D’Odorico et al, 2014), approximately one-fifth of the global virtual water relates to production for exports (Hoekstra and Mekonnen, 2012) and around 80% of the global population live in net-importing countries (Porkka et al, 2013). Globalization has led to an increase in the outsourcing of resources such as land or water used in agricultural production as consumers withdraw limited resources from distant locations (Steen-Olsen et al, 2012; Meyfroidt et al, 2013). Countries, businesses and individuals should be conscious of the potential impacts taking place in the primary production areas
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary 
Published Version (
Free)
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
