Community Benefits

“The largest portion of the average person’s water footprint comes from their diet.”

Water Footprint Calculator

A plastic container with approximately 1 gallon of water

• Eating less meat helps our communities use less water and produce less visible (and invisible) pollution. Every quarter pound of beef requires 460 gallons of water to produce (equivalent to taking around 23 showers) (USDI, Harvard 2020). In addition, raising millions of animals for meat creates concentrated biological and chemical waste that is harmful to nearby waterways and contributes to the buildup of greenhouse gases (Four Paws in US 2021).

• The good news is that a comparable amount of protein from beans or whole grains provides much more fiber with a tiny fraction of the resource and pollution cost (Food Revolution Network 2021). Even small adjustments can make a big difference in making sure our communities have the clean water and air we need.

Evidence shows that our pollution rates have a direct impact on the development of natural disasters like droughts, hurricanes, fires, floods, and sudden temperature drops (NASA Earth Observatory 2005). Eating less meat can help reduce our dietary footprint.

Sources

US Department of the Interior https://water.usgs.gov/edu/activity-watercontent.php

(Harvard 2020) https://green.harvard.edu/tools-resources/green-tip/4-ways-measure-5-minute-shower

(NASA Earth Observatory 2005) https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/features/RisingCost/rising_cost5.php

(Four Paws in US 2021) https://www.fourpawsusa.org/campaigns-topics/topics/nutrition/the-environmental-impact

(Food Revolution Network 2021) https://foodrevolution.org/blog/food-and-water-footprint-agriculture-impact/

(Water Footprint Calculator 2018) https://www.watercalculator.org/footprint/water-friendly-food-choices/