Homer Simpson may have just passed out from sheer exhilaration: a new water footprint calculator shows that guzzling a pint of beer is less harmful for the environment than drinking a glass of milk. Developed by a group from the University of Twente in the Netherlands, the new website called waterfootprint.org allows consumers to calculate the amount of water used in the manufacturing and transportation of the products they buy.

For example, an apple weighing 100 grams has a water footprint of 70 liters and a cup of coffee at 125 ml has a footprint of 140 liters. Not surprisingly, the impact of red meat is significantly higher, with the production of one kilogram of beef coming in at 15,500 liters of water. Though still high, chicken and other poultry show a much lower number, with 3,900 liters of water being used to produce one kilogram of the meat.

The website also shows how different countries rank according to their water footprints, with the United States leading the pack at 2,500 cubic meters per year per capita, and Italy trailing closely behind. Some experts believe the results of calculating water footprints could have a much great effect on consumption than other tactics such as "food miles," and say that research may indicated that shipping products from around the world can actually have less of an impact than the carbon intensive production of locally-produced goods. Ultimately they believe that consuming less is the best answer, as is recycling goods whenever possible.

Some of the water footprints for popular items include:

One slice of white bread - 40 liters
One hamburger - 2,400 liters
One kilogram of cheddar cheese: 5,000 liters
Cotton shirt - 2,700 liters
Pint of beer - 160 liters
Glass of wine (125 ml) - 120 liters
Pint of milk - 1,760

» The Independent