Ever think that the future of beer drinking could be affected by the global water crisis? The food and beverage industry is especially at risk as issues of global water scarcity are increasingly more pervasive.

AB InBev is the umbrella company that manufactures Budweiser beer. In a previous article published on 03 December 2010, WaterWideWeb interviewed Hugh Share AB InBev’s Global Director, Beer & Better World. Share said, “High quality water is fundamental to our business. It’s the principal ingredient in our beers and soft drinks”.

Water conservation efforts are vital to protecting the market for AB InBev products and ensuring that consumers can enjoy Anheuser-Busch products responsibly well into the future.

Brewing a beerable future is contingent upon the use of best practices in water conservation, cooperation with other leading industry experts in reduction goals, and implementing a comprehensive sustainable business plan.

“Our global water usage target is 3.5 hectoliters of water for each hectoliter of production by the end of 2012”, confirmed Share in the interview on 03 December 2010.

Reportedly, there was a 6 percent decrease in hectoliter water usage per hectoliter of beer production over the 2009 baseline. An AB InBev press release noted that the 6 percent reduction is out of a total 18.6 percent that the company aims to achieve by reaching its 2012 Better World target of 3.5 hectoliters of water per hectoliter of production.

For beer drinkers, news of successful water conservation efforts by AB InBev is a piece of good news indeed. In order for consumers to enjoy AB InBev products responsibly, it needs to be brewed sustainably.

Of course, keeping consumers happy is only half of the equation with respect to sustainable food and beverage products. Return on investment, protecting brand reputation, and increasing profit margins is the other half of the sustainable business equation.

The cycle of sustainability requires that buyers, sellers, and manufacturers commit to natural resource management. Without water, there can be no beer. Without beer, America would be a very different place.

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