Sobering news this week, as new research shows that four billion people globally face severe water scarcity for at least one month a year.

Water shortages affect two thirds of the world’s population, with 500 million people living in places where water consumption is double the amount replenished by rain. China and India are the two countries most in danger but Australia and central and western America are also under threat.

Professor Arjen Hoekstra, from the University of Twente team which led the research, was quick to point out that the UK can’t afford to relax either, saying, “(London doesn’t) have the water in the surrounding area to sustain the water flows” to it in the long term.

Separately, as population growth continues, so farming rates have to increase in order to meet demands for food – unfortunately, the farming industry is the biggest consumer of water. 25% of a person’s water footprint comes from meat consumption, as 15,000 litres of water is required in order to produce 1kg of beef.

“Caps on water use should be put in place, and companies should be transparent about how much water is needed to make their products and look to reduce it”, added Prof Hoekstra.

Water plays an important role in the manufacturing process. At TrakRap, we’ve already reduced the amounts of energy and materials we use - we also make every effort to ensure we are water efficient too.