For some numbers:
One graph even has California’s animal feed water usage so large it actually goes off the chart at 15.2 million acre-feet of water (it is distorted to make it fit as it notes). For some comparison, the blue water usage of animal feed is larger than all of almonds water usage of ~2 million acre-feet of water
https://pacinst.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/ca_ftprint_full_report3.pdf#page=25
EDIT:
If the image isn’t loading for you, here’s a direct link: https://i.imgur.com/EjVps9Z.png
EDIT 2:
Also worth noting is that per liter, dairy milk requires 628.2 L of freshwater vs almond milk requiring 371.46 L of freshwater. And if you use something like oat milk instead that gets you to 48.24 L
Hi, it’s me, the average person, How is this a problem?
Record droughts
The end of the entire human race due to climate change
Before that, climate change destroying your house or access to food
It undeniably does, but what would be interesting is a comparison of how much water is needed per liter of milk and various substitutes.
Per liter, dairy milk requires 628.2 L of freshwater vs almond milk requiring 371.46 L of freshwater. And if you use something like oat milk instead that gets you to 48.24 L
I still like Soy milk the best. It’s tried and true, and uses less water than Oat. Sadly, the emissions are a bit higher…
But a benefit is that in making soy milk, you have the setup to make tofu, which is lovely as well.
Soy milk gang!
Drinking coffee with soy milk in it right now.
Animal feed is a huge category, vs. almonds. Almonds registering on that scale is what’s so shocking about it.
Edit: Not that it isn’t wasteful, if you need extra feed besides grazing, you’re in trouble ecologically.
The water usage per liter of dairy milk is also higher. Per liter, dairy milk requires 628.2 L of freshwater vs almond milk requiring 371.46 L of freshwater. And if you use something like oat milk instead that gets you to 48.24 L.
https://ourworldindata.org/environmental-impact-milks
Keep in mind here that 80% of the entire world’s almonds are grown in California, so it’s not surprising its a decent large user by size. Even despite that, just the mostly US demand for animal feed dwarfs water usage in California
