The pie charts compare the proportion of water devoted to agricultural products – vegetables, livestock, dairy, cotton, sugar, fruit, and rice – with the share of income generated from them in Australia in 2004. Overall, although a smaller percentage of water was used for fruit, it yielded by far the highest revenue, making it the best return. An inverse scenario can be observed in livestock products. Notably, water allocation for other agricultural products was comparable with the share of income that they made.
Focusing on water consumption, livestock products accounted of 36% of total water usage, almost double that of dairy, which constituted 19%. The figures for cotton, fruit, and sugar followed, making up 15%, 11%, and 10%, respectively. Next came rice, with 5%, just ahead of vegetables (4%).
When it comes to revenue, the percentage of the earnings from fruits (44%) was significantly higher, so much so that it equaled that for dairy (24%), cotton (13%), and sugar (7%) put together. The remaining income was generated by livestock, vegetables, and rice, with their respective shares standing at 6%, 5%, and 1%.