With so much information out there, The World Wide Web can be a scary place.  To make life a bit simpler, we at the American Beverage Association strive to be your number one source for all of your beverage information needs.

One fun and interactive feature on the ABA website is our water use comparison page.  You may be surprised to learn that the beverage industry facilities account for a very small portion of the nation’s overall water use.  Because water is a key component of all our products, we are, as an industry, responsible users of it.

According to the United States Geological Survey, the largest users of water in the United States are the irrigation and thermoelectric power industries, which account for 82 percent of total water use.  The public supply amounts to 11 percent of total water use, and of that, the beverage industry’s use of water accounts for only 3/100ths of 1 percent.

Still, the beverage industry continues to minimize its environmental footprint, and responsible water use is part of that.  In fact, just this week, the Environmental Leader reported on PepsiCo.’s recent water efficiency improvements as outlined in its 2009 Corporate Citizenship Report. PepsiCo., a global company, saved more than more than 12 billion liters of water last year.  And by 2015 they aim to improve water use efficiency by 20 percent per unit of production.  Proving that responsible water use isn’t just good for the environment, they are also working, on that same timeline, to provide access to clean water to 3 million people in developing countries.

Also this year, The Coca-Cola Company collaborated with the US Agency for International Development (USAID) to provide about 1.5 million dollars to improve water and sanitation in Ghana for the next three years.

And the Dr Pepper Snapple Group continues to work to reduce liquid losses, minimize wastewater discharge and explore new ways to use recovered water, such as for plant irrigation and cooling systems.

We all need to do our part to reduce water use and increase our water efficiency.  Please check back with Sip & Savor for more information on the many ways the beverage industry is working to improve the environment we all share.