A snack size serving of almonds is around 20 of them, representing about 20 gallons. A side dish of lettuce is probably about half of one, 8 gallons.
That said, California's water is probably best used in high value add industries like semiconductor manufacturing.
California has some of the best soil for farming in the country (or even the world). A gallon of water used for agriculture in California will be more effective than a gallon used for agriculture in most other places.
As far as I know there is nothing that makes California a great place for semiconductor manufacturing. A gallon of water used for semiconductors in California isn't more effective than a gallon used for semiconductor manufacturing anywhere else.
That argues for prioritizing in California water for agriculture over water for semiconductors.
Also there's much actual semiconductor manufacturing in Silicon Valley anymore.
edit: i am apparently worse than an almond milk drinker, since coffee uses even more water at 1,056:1.
and learning even more, cow-milk is about 2000 gallons of water to make a gallon of milk!
so i really have no idea about any of this and its all surprising
https://shamelesshousewife.wordpress.com/tag/how-much-water-...
Irrigating California deserts and semi-arid regions for agriculture isn’t just some kind of random vanity project.
Honestly not sure if you are joking or just being glib? Nuts are extremely calorie dense.
Almonds - 165 calories per oz
Iceberg - 4 calories per oz
Romaine - 5 calories per oz
Nuts are primarily used to add flavouring to a meal based on (say) rice, or as snacks rather than full meals.
Most food isn’t consumed purely for its caloric value, but the calorie density of nuts means that they are often a major source of calories as consumed.
> Nuts are primarily used to add flavouring to a meal based on (say) rice
Arguably, preference for the flavor is a result of them being used for a long time to add additional fat and protein calories to a meal based on rice. They don’t have to be the major component to be significant that way, since rice has little protein and less fat and is far less calorie dense than nuts are.
> or as snacks rather than full meals.
Snacks tend to be eaten largely to fill a caloric demand (not necessarily need, as it can be in people habituated to surplus) and a nut-based snack may be a bigger calorie chunk than a “full meal” of less calorie dense foods the same person eats.
https://waterfootprint.org/en/water-footprint/product-water-...
