Why Water Matters in our Food?

     Sudanese men pull drinking water from a well in Shendi, Sudan. Lack of
                       drinking water remains to be problematic in most homes in Shendi.(Associated Press)

More pictures about World Water Day   from Boston:

• The World Water DayThe World Water Day in 2012 is intended to draw the international attention on the relationships between water & food security. “Food security exists when all people, at all times, have physical, social and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life” and water is one of the fundamental input factor to the food production."



All You Eat Video  is a promo by  UN for World Water Day 2012  and launched by the Food and Agriculture organization (FAO)  and check this animation as well.
This is another effective video by UNICEF: 2 lives, 2 miles apart series // Water
 

• Food security has been part of the crucial discussions in the international political agenda following the peak prices of 2008 and the financial crisis of 2009. Since then, the raising commodity price level continued volatility have destabilized food security in several countries.( See previous post about Stabilizing Food Prices ) .
   Future population growth, urbanization, changing diets and development pressure on land and water  and energy cost increase are all conducive to a progressive and severe water scarcity that will in turn undermine the food security. Not to forget that climate changes and global warming impose a remarkable impact on the most food insecure populations first. Read more :  UN :Food and Water
  
  Preventing food waste..means preventing water to be wasted. The UN started an online    awareness campaign by encouraging people to upload their food and then they calculate the water used to make it. (More pics from the campaign)

1 tomato, cheese and vegetable pizza (725 gram) = 1246 L embedded WATER Source:

 Lebanon and its  Water Crisis : " Water use is growing at a steady rate, and the problem is compounded by a phenomenon that Lebanon is fully aware of: rapid urbanization. Add in the increasing threat posed by floods and droughts as a consequence of temperature fluctuations, and one can easily imagine Lebanon faces the prospect of an all-out crisis." Read more: 1G water plan in Daily Star  )

 "The problems facing Lebanon are numerous: Illegal wells are introducing sea water into an aquifer and reducing the water table, while industrial waste is polluting the Litani River and turned the Beirut River blood red last month. The nation has few dams and reservoirs to retain the heavy rainfall in the winter months and water officials say consumption is almost entirely unregulated.

Read more: Water Crisis Looms in Lebanon : Daily Star )

Beirut River turns red >> Now Lebanon

•  Water Facts:

1. Nearly one billion people – that’s 1 in every 6 of us – lack access to safe water.
2. Every day, the global water and sanitation crisis claims the lives of as many children under five to equal that of 16 jumbo jets crashing.
3. Over 2.6 billion people lack access to adequate sanitation – with nearly half that number (1.2 billion) –  living without sanitation facilities at all.
4. Access to clean water helps sustain and mobilize communities. Sanitation facilities provide dignity and improve hygiene. Hygiene education facilitates prevention and reduces the risk of life-threatening disease

( Info taken from Ryan's Well. How One Child Changed the World : In 1999, seven year old Ryan Hreljac's first well was built in a Ugandan village. Now the Ryan's Well Foundation has grown into a family of people committed to delivering access to safe water, as an essential way to improve the lives of people in the developing world. We empower citizens of all ages to take action and effect change in the world. Read more : Ryan's Well. )

• See also : TEDxGateway - Michael Pritchard - A bottle that will save millions of lives.