Water Fact Sheet: Corn (Grain) | California Crop Water Facts

26.7

gallons of irrigation water applied per serving

One serving = 3.2 oz

California, 2025: 50,000 harvested acres (USDA NASS).

Growing a pound of this crop takes about 69 gallons of water in California, compared with a world average of about 123 gallons: California uses 56 percent of the water the world average takes to grow the same pound.Mekonnen and Hoekstra (2011), green and blue water, California value regionalized

The same volume as

About this figure The gallons shown are irrigation water applied to grow corn (grain) in California, divided by the servings the 2025 harvest produced. Applied water per acre comes from the DWR California Water Plan estimate for the crop category (corn); harvested acres and production come from the USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service 2025 annual crop survey for California; the serving size comes from USDA. The result is a production-weighted statewide average of applied water only; rainfall is excluded.

Sources

Applied water: California Department of Water Resources, California Water Plan crop-category applied water.

Acreage (harvested acres) and production: USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service, Quick Stats, California annual crop survey, 2025 crop year.

Serving size: USDA.

World comparison: Mekonnen, M.M. and Hoekstra, A.Y. (2011), The green, blue and grey water footprint of crops and derived crop products, Hydrology and Earth System Sciences 15; green and blue water, California value regionalized; item 'Maize (corn)'.

Figures as of September 25, 2026.

How to cite

California Crop Water Fact Sheet: Corn (Grain). conciseVerbosity, September 25, 2026. https://api.conciseverbosity.com/water-facts/corn-grain.html