53 gallons of water needed to make a quarter pound hamburger patty
It takes a lot of water to produce one pound of animal product, but animal products give only 18% of the world’s calories. It’s a poor trade off.
- 477 gallons (1,800L) of water to produce 1 pound (450g) of eggs
- 520 gallons (1,140L) of water to produce 1 pound of chicken
- 720 gallons (2,725L) of water to produce 1 pound of pork
- 900 gallons (3,400L) of water to produce 1 pound of cheese
- 1,000 gallons (3,785L) of water to produce 1 gallon (3.78L) of milk
- 1,800 to 2,500 gallons of water to produce 1 pound of beef
Most of the total volume of water (98%) refers to the water footprint of the feed for the animals. [Cowspiracy, WaterFootPrint.org]
