Water Footprint and the Impact of Food Production Environmental Sustainability

Abstract

Freshwater is a sparse source. It takes a significant amount of water to get food that we eat from the fields to the plates on our dining room tables. What we eat makes up a large number of our water footprints. A water footprint is used to indicate the amount of freshwater that any given process or activity uses. In addition to our diets, issues revolving around water footprint include water depletion and pollution. Water depletion, specifically freshwater depletion refers to the lack of sufficient available freshwater resources to meet water demand. Water pollution occurs when harmful substances such as microorganisms contaminate a source of fresh water such as a lake, stream, or river. The water footprint of food is significantly high and that is why it is important that we reduce food waste to preserve and protect the food available to us.