Livestock Water Study

MJ Author

02/28/2020 Added

39 Plays

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It takes less water to produce livestock products than it did 60 years ago. That's the result of an analysis done by the University of Nebraska's Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute.

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[00:00:01.210]Producers need water to bring food
[00:00:03.650]from the farm to the table,
[00:00:05.560]but a new study suggests the tap is turning.
[00:00:08.940]It takes less water to produce meat, milk, and eggs
[00:00:12.220]than it did 60 years ago.
[00:00:14.130]That's good news for consumers and producers.
[00:00:17.750]And as we know, livestock is one of the major
[00:00:20.580]economic activity.
[00:00:22.505]Mesfin Mekonnen is research assistant professor
[00:00:25.120]in Nebraska's Daugherty Water For Food Global Institute.
[00:00:28.860]Mekonnen's analysis shows annual water investment
[00:00:32.040]in US livestock dropped 36% from 1960 to 2016.
[00:00:37.825]It gives me a good feeling
[00:00:39.590]that everybody's working to improve.
[00:00:43.170]Beef production requires half the water
[00:00:45.530]needed in 1960,
[00:00:47.244]pork production uses a fourth of the water it used to,
[00:00:51.140]and milk is five times more water efficient.
[00:00:54.980]Part of the reason is the animal and what it eats.
[00:00:58.210]A cow produce 10 times more milk now than in 1960.
[00:01:05.320]That's improvement in the genetics
[00:01:07.830]plus the way they feed them
[00:01:11.390]and the type of feed they consume.
[00:01:13.710]For example, selective breeding helped
[00:01:15.980]increase the size of animals and it takes less water
[00:01:19.650]to produce livestock feed than it used to.
[00:01:22.860]Mekonnen says the study demonstrates the importance
[00:01:25.930]of improvements in every stage of livestock production.
[00:01:29.730]It creates the awareness that we need to look
[00:01:32.964]the full supply chain when we talk about livestock
[00:01:38.100]or other products.
[00:01:40.484]So, from beef production and feed production
[00:01:44.350]to the final output.
[00:01:46.230]As the global population increases,
[00:01:48.580]so does demand for meat, milk, and eggs.
[00:01:51.740]Improved efficiency and productivity
[00:01:54.230]helps feed the world and protect the planet's
[00:01:57.060]precious water resources.
[00:01:59.135](upbeat music)

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Livestock Water Study

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