Water Issues Presentation

I chose to research how much water it takes to produce a steak versus a salad. I have been a vegetarian for about 10 years, so I wanted to see how much of an effect my diet has on water consumption as opposed to the typical American diet. I expected steak to use more water than salad, but I was shocked by just how much more water a steak requires. A salad with dressing requires 15 gallons of water, but a serving of steak requires 1200 gallons! If one were to remove beef from his or her diet entirely, he or she would be saving about 300,000 gallons of water a year.

A steak requires so much water for its production because water is needed to grow the crops eaten by cattle, animals must drink water, and water is used to wash livestock. For salad, on the other hand, water is used only to grow the vegetables and wash them prior to consumption.

I was shocked to learn the relationship between the production of food and the consumption of water. It is important for society to become aware that reducing the consumption of certain foods, particularly animal products, can help aid water conservation.