British Professor John Anthony Allan from King's College London and
the School of Oriental and African Studies, was on Wednesday (March 19)
awarded the 2008 Stockholm Water Prize.
    In its citation, the international nominating committee said Allen was
awarded the prize for his "unique, pioneering and long lasting work in
education and raising the awareness internationally of interdisciplinary
relationships between agricultural production, water use, economies and
political processes". 
    In 1993, Allen first introduced the concept of  "virtual
water," a measurement of the water that is embedded in the production of
foods and consumer products. 
    By using his methods, research showed that behind that morning cup of
coffee, there are 140 litres of water that have been consumed to grow,
produce, package and ship the beans. 
    That is roughly equal to the amount of water used by an average person
in England for all their daily drinking and household needs. 
    "One cup of coffee takes 140 litres of water to produce and one
pair of jeans takes about 10,000 litres to produce and one kilo of beef takes
about 15,000 litres of water to produce," Professor Per-Arne Malmqvist,
from the Stockholm Water Foundation said after the announcement. 
    The production of a car weighing 1.1 tons would use up 400-1000 cubic
metres, a nappy, weighing 75 grams would use up 810 litres and a pair of
jeans, weighing roughly one kilogram, would use up 10,800 litres of water.
    According to the Stockholm Water foundation, an average American
consumes over 6,000 litres of virtual water every day; over triple the average
Chinese.   
    Malmqkvist said Allan's work had also shown how water intensive
commodities could be traded from places where high returns to water can be
achieved, for example the Untited States and Argentina, to countries where
water is scarce or cannot produce as efficiently.   
    "If you wish to use your water wisely in a region, you don't grow
crops that need a lot of water or you don't grow cattle, but you use your
water for other kinds of productions," Malmqvist    said.
    He said that countries where water was scarce could import this water
instead, in the way of crops, cereal or beef.
    The Stockholm Water Prize, presented annually by the Stockholm Water
Foundation, is worth 150,000 United States (U.S.) dollars. The prize will be
presented during World Water Week in Stockholm, on August 21.