Research Articles: Water Shortage, Food Security, and Virtual Water in China

Abstract

In China, water shortage and water pollution are pronounced challenges. The limited water resources are poorly managed. Despite a lack of water, China is committed to being food self-sufficient, which requires extensive irrigation. The paradoxical ambitions of reducing water shortage and promoting food self-sufficiency are supported by technological innovation and costly engineering projects. Yet, these attempts will ultimately fail to bridge the gap between water demand and supply. China's continued economic growth presents difficult problems and new prospects in the context of water and food security. On one hand, a growing number of wealthier, urban Chinese consumers are demanding water-intensive food products, which cannot be sustainably produced in China in light of heavy irrigation requirements and continued population growth. On the other hand, the economic growth opens a window of opportunity for China to include virtual water trade as a component of its water policies. China is reluctant to embrace this trade because it perceives it to have a negative effect on its national security. It appears that China's security axis must shift. It cannot maintain its growing population and economy while preserving current levels of water, food, and national security simultaneously. A policy change is needed. It is argued, therefore, that the policy relevance of virtual water trade must be addressed, and the water shortage–induced imperative of food imports must be given appropriate attention.

Notes

Notes

1. The concept of virtual water was coined in London in 1994, years after the notion of embedded water had been established. The origin of the idea is derived from the Israeli analysis by Gideon Fishelson et al. in the late 1980s, which concluded that exporting Israeli water in water-intensive crops was illogical (Fisher, 2002, p. 1).

2. Food sovereignty is the right of people to healthy, culturally appropriate food produced through sustainable methods, and their right to define their own food and agriculture systems. It puts the aspirations and needs of those who produce, distribute, and consume food, rather than the demands of markets and corporations, at the heart of food systems and policies. It defends the interests and inclusion of the next generation.