"Report: Food Companies Face Growing Water Risks"

"Food companies should be taking stronger steps to use water more efficiently and adapt to growing water scarcity, a nonprofit advocacy group said in a report released Thursday.

The organization Ceres ranked 37 major food companies on how effectively they are managing water-related risks that can affect profits as well as food production. It concluded that while a relatively small number of companies are taking significant actions to address water risks in their businesses, 'most have a long way to go.'

'Many companies in the food sector treat water, even though it’s core to their business model, as something that is cheap and limitless. Cheap it may still be, but limitless it’s not,' said Brooke Barton, senior director of the water program at Ceres, which is based in Boston. 'In fact, we’re rapidly coming to the end of cheap, plentiful water, and not just in California but throughout major growing regions around the world, from China and India to Mexico.'"

Ian James reports for the Palm Springs Desert Sun May 7, 2015.