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While we already know that water — like pretty much everything else on the planet — is a limited resource, what can be less clear is how much of the substance is required to manufacture even the most basic of items. Products that would seem not to involve any water at all — or very, very little of it — in fact have a significant water footprint. Because, basically, it’s water all the way down: To make a piece of cheese, you need to feed your cows, which requires wheat, which requires water. Same deal for beef and for leather shoes. Even veganism isn’t fully water-virtuous: Cotton, for example, tends to be grown in arid climates, which in turn demand high volumes of water to keep the plants flourishing.

Below, the water requirements for some of the things you might be wearing/eating/using right now:

One pair of shoes: 2,257 gallons
One pair of jeans: 2,636 gallons
One chocolate bar: 454 gallons
One piece of beef: 4,000 gallons
One hamburger: 632 gallons
One plain-cheese pizza: 321 gallons
One slice of cheese: 40 gallons
One pint of beer: 45 gallons
One cup of coffee: 35 gallons
One apple: 22 gallons
One loaf of bread: 13 gallons
One sheet of paper: 3 gallons

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