The concept can build awareness in consumers of their ''hidden'' water
usage, or that contained in the whole production chain of goods and services.
The scientist behind the innovation, Professor Tony Allan, has personally
reduced his virtual water usage by becoming a vegetarian!

So how much water is in a cup of coffee. 

Well a cup's worth of course. 

Not so if you add in it's ''virtual water'' content - then it jumps to 140
litres!

The scientist behind the concept, British Professor Tony Allan, has just
received the Stockholm Water Prize for his innovation.

PROFESSOR JOHN ANTHONY ALLAN, WINNER OF THIS YEAR'S
STOCKHOLM WATER PRIZE, SAYING:
"Virtual water is the water that is embedded in a commodity; water
that is needed to grow it, to raise it or to manufacture it. So a tonne of
wheat takes a thousand tonnes of water, so that is a thousand cubic metres of
water approximately, at least, sometimes it takes more.'' 

Anther water intensive product is cotton, resulting in around 10,000 litres
of water making up a pair of jeans. 

But as Prof Jan Lundqvist of the Stockholm International Water Institute
says the most water intensive sector is food. 

PROF JAN LUNDQVIST OF THE STOCKHOLM INTERNATIONAL WATER
INSTITUTE SAYING,
''It's likely that the demand on food will be increasing quite
substantially in years to come, but then we don't have the water. We don't
have the land, as we see it today to just continue with current trends.''

Current trends are for consumers to spend more on products that use a lot
of water, like meat.

Beef is so water intensive that one burger alone soaks up 2,400 litres by
the time it lands on your plate. 

PROFESSOR JOHN ANTHONY ALLAN, WINNER OF THIS YEAR'S STOCKHOLM
WATER PRIZE, SAYING,:
''The water needed to provide a non-vegetarian diet, a meat-eating diet is
dramatically more water consumptive than a vegetarian diet. I now challenge
people, 'are you a two-and-a-half metre a day person or a five metre a day
person.' Because if you're a five metre a day person you're eating rather
large amounts of meat if you're a vegetarian you're only using two-and-a-half
metres a day.''

So if you want to reduce your water footprint, vegetarianism and reduced
food wastage offers an instant solution.

Michelle Carlile-Alkhouri, Reuters