On Valentine’s Day alone 58 million pounds of chocolate are sold. Can you guess how much water is needed to make a single chocolate bar?
Love is in the air this month … Store aisles are bursting with flowers, and lots and lots of pretty heart-shaped boxes of chocolate. And that got this water nerd thinking about chocolate production — and the water footprint it leaves behind.
A water footprint is the measurement of the amount of fresh water used to produce goods and services. It takes about 450 gallons of water to produce a single chocolate bar. On Valentine’s Day alone, Americans buy about 58 million pounds of chocolate. No need to do the math to realize just how much water is being used for it all.
You’re probably wondering how chocolate can require so much water. It starts with farming cocoa beans. Just like coffee trees, cocoa trees are very water dependent, requiring steady rainfall or consistent irrigation to thrive. Even production and packaging require water too.
Lack of water is a rising concern for many cocoa farmers across the globe. Climate change and water scarcity could potentially lead to a chocolate shortage as soon as 2050.
But you can help give a little extra love to the plant and your loved ones — by supporting ethically produced chocolate this Valentine’s season.
Curious about your own water footprint? Learn about the typical activities that use potable water around the house — and to compare it to the water footprint of agriculture and other industries.
