How about 450 gallons of water with your hamburger?
Calculate the amount of water it takes to produce your food
New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof wrote a jaw-dropping column this weekend that may make you rethink every single thing you eat.
Kristof, who grew up on an Oregon farm, explained the stunning amount of water that goes into factory farming our food. A hamburger, for example, takes 450 gallons of water to produce – enough for 18 people to take 10-minute showers.
Foods that require the most water to produce:
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Other foods are also a major drain – a single head of lettuce takes 12 gallons, and a gallon of milk 880 gallons, Kristof reports.
Kristof provided a link from National Geographic that you can use to calculate the amount of water it takes to produce your food.
National Geographic says the average American uses 2,000 gallons a day. In California, home of a major drought, 80 percent of water is used for farming and ranching, Kristof says.
It’s not a problem they can fix with shorter showers.
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