Water Footprint of Dietary Choices and Sustainability

Presenter

Ryan Micheal Steele

Group Members

Jacquelyn M. Daunis

Campus

Springfield Technical Community College

Sponsor

Reena Randhir, Department of Biology, Springfield Technical Community College

Schedule

Session 4, 2:30 PM - 3:15 PM [Schedule by Time][Poster Grid for Time/Location]

Location

Poster Board C27, Poster Showcase Room (163), Row 3 (C21-C30) [Poster Location Map]

Abstract

The water footprint (WF) of food is the amount of water used for irrigation or processing in the cultivation of crops and livestock. The total WF includes both blue water WF from ground/ surface water and green WF from rain. It is concerning that 70% of the total water footprint of all sectors is from the food industry, indicating that our current agricultural practices are not sustainable. Moreover animal-based food products typically have a higher greenhouse gases and water footprint compared to plant-based foods due to the energy-intensive nature of livestock production. The objective of this research is to study the strategies to reduce the water footprint of diet and coincidently improve human and environmental health. This poster is a systemic research of scientific articles and nature reviews. Studies show that European and Oceanian diets have high green WF and Asian diets have high blue WF. A diet rich in vegetables is more environmental and human health friendly, whereas a meat diet has a higher water and carbon footprint. Hence lowering the WF of foods is vital to achieve a more sustainable food systems. This can be achieved through water-efficient practices in agriculture, adopting plant-based diets, reducing food waste, improving transportation and processing methods. With diets changing fast and water becoming scarcer, we need to understand how much and what kind of water is used in food production to make good decisions.

Keywords

Microplastics, Health , Blood

Research Area

Public Health and Epidemiology

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