Water footprint of a large-sized food company: The case of Barilla pasta production

Ruini, Luca; Marino, Massimo; Pignatelli, Sonia; Laio, Francesco; Ridolfi, Luca

doi:10.1016/j.wri.2013.04.002

Cited by 67 publications

(45 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…The amount of blue water saved through the adoption of Aureo brought about savings that are fivefold higher than the freshwater saved in 2008-2014 in the company's plants all over the world. The adoption of this program also decreased the volume of imported virtual water related to durum wheat, as reported by Ruini et al [36] for 2011. It can be argued that relieving the pressure on blue water resources is particularly important in dry contexts, such as Arizona, where agricultural water accounts for 80% of total freshwater withdrawals.…”

Section: Water Footprint Reduction: the Aureo Wheat Programmesupporting

confidence: 59%

“…Since 2011, the water footprint has been deployed as an environmental and supply chain indicator of water use [35]. The water footprint of pasta, as well as the virtual water "flows" associated with pasta and durum wheat trade have been disclosed since 2013 [36]. The water footprint of a wide range of Barilla's products (including pasta, bakery products and sauces) has been made public through the release of EPDs (more details in Section 3.1).…”

Section: Corporate Social Responsibility and Engagement In Sustainablmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Business Engagement with Sustainable Water Resource Management through Water Footprint Accounting: The Case of the Barilla Company

Antonelli

Ruini

2015

Sustainability

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This study investigates business engagement in sustainable water management, focusing on water footprint accounting as a tool to account for water use in food supply chains. An explorative analysis is conducted on the Barilla Company. The study explores two corporate strategies aimed at achieving more sustainable water use: the adoption of environmental products declarations (EPDs), a reporting system that accounts for the environmental footprints of Barilla's pasta and other products; and the implementation of the Aureo Wheat Programme. The study deployed both primary and secondary data. The study shows that the largest share of the water footprint of pasta relates to the cultivation phase (over 90%), which is almost fully rainfed. EPDs show that the water footprint of the other phases of the supply chain is negligible. It is argued that the use of water footprinting in EPDs can raise awareness about water use in agricultural supply chains to reach a broad spectrum of stakeholders, including consumers. The study also shows that the implementation of the Aureo Wheat Programme, consisting of a shift in cultivation site and in the type of wheat, enabled a reduction in the blue water footprint of pasta, with water savings amounting to 35 million m 3 of blue water since 2011.

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Section: Water Footprint Reduction: the Aureo Wheat Programmesupporting

confidence: 59%

Section: Corporate Social Responsibility and Engagement In Sustainablmentioning

confidence: 99%

Business Engagement with Sustainable Water Resource Management through Water Footprint Accounting: The Case of the Barilla Company

Antonelli

Ruini

2015

Sustainability

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“…This is particularly relevant to businesses wishing to engage in transparent water use estimates across product supply chains, with potential benefits to both their own interests (saving water and reducing costs) as well as for better informing customers. Many companies and corporations have already embraced water footprinting of their operations (Unilever, 2012;Coca-Cola and Nature Conservancy, 2010;Raisio, 2010;Rep, 2011;Pepsi Co, 2011;Nestlé, 2011;SABMiller et al, 2011;Cooper et al, 2011;Ruini et al, 2013;Francke and Castro, 2013).…”

Section: Choice Of Spatiotemporal Scale Of Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

Quantifying the human impact on water resources: a critical review of the water footprint concept

Chenoweth

Hadjikakou

Zoumides

2014

Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci.

134

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Abstract. The water footprint is a consumption-based indicator of water use, referring to the total volume of freshwater used directly and indirectly by a nation or a company, or in the provision of a product or service. Despite widespread enthusiasm for the development and use of water footprints, some concerns have been raised about the concept and its usefulness. A variety of methodologies have been developed for water footprinting which differ with respect to how they deal with different forms of water use. The result is water footprint estimates which vary dramatically, often creating confusion. Despite these methodological qualms, the concept has had notable success in raising awareness about water use in agricultural and industrial supply chains, by providing a previously unavailable and (seemingly) simple numerical indicator of water use. Nevertheless, and even though a range of uses have already been suggested for water footprinting, its policy value remains unclear. Unlike the carbon footprint which provides a universal measure of human impact on the atmosphere's limited absorptive capacity, the water footprint in its conventional form solely quantifies a single production input without any accounting of the impacts of use, which vary spatially and temporally. Following an extensive review of the literature related to water footprints, this paper critically examines the present uses of the concept, focusing on its current strengths, shortcomings and promising research avenues to advance it.

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“…Similarly, Ruini et al [30], applied water footprint assessment to a pasta company, in order to measure the sustainability of the related manufacturing process. Li and Chen [31] applied water footprint evaluation to gaming service, which reflected that direct water consumption only accounted for a small proportion.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Regional Water Footprint Assessment: A Case Study of Leshan City

Zhao

Zhang

2015

Sustainability

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This paper presents an assessment of urban water footprint in the period of 2001 to 2012 by taking Leshan City, China as a typical case study. The water footprint is calculated by the sum of the water footprints of various sectors, i.e., crop production, animal products, industrial processes, domestic waster, eco-environment, and virtual water trade. Results show that the water footprints of the various sectors rose by degrees varying from 19% to 55%, which gave rise to an increase of the total water footprint of 43.13% from 2001 to 2012. Crop production and animal products are identified as the major water intensive sectors, accounting for about 68.97% of the total water footprint. The water footprint in the Northeastern area of Leshan City is greater than that of the Southwestern area in the period 1992-2012, resulted in an expansion of water footprint in the Sha Wan and Wu Tongqiao Districts due to the development of urbanization. The application of water footprint assessment is expected to provide insight into the improvement of urban water efficiency, and thus aid in better water resources management.

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Water footprint of a large-sized food company: The case of Barilla pasta production

Cited by 67 publications

References 9 publications

Business Engagement with Sustainable Water Resource Management through Water Footprint Accounting: The Case of the Barilla Company

Business Engagement with Sustainable Water Resource Management through Water Footprint Accounting: The Case of the Barilla Company

Quantifying the human impact on water resources: a critical review of the water footprint concept

Regional Water Footprint Assessment: A Case Study of Leshan City

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