Drought-hit England tells South Asians to wash rice twice, urges less water for wudu

Wash rice twice instead of seven times. Use a one-litre jug rather than a running tap for wudu. England’s water crisis has brought rice-washing habits and prayer-time water use under scrutiny, with a £270,000 taxpayer-funded campaign encouraging South Asian communities to wash rice fewer times and Muslims to reduce the amount of water used for ablution.

Nearly three-quarters of England is experiencing drought after five heatwaves this summer depleted river and reservoir levels. The situation has prompted water regulator Ofwat to fund two campaigns under a project titled “Water efficiency in faith and diverse communities”, aimed at reducing water use in everyday cultural and religious practices.

British Malaysian celebrity chef Ping Coombes appears in a video aimed at Asian communities, discussing the practice of washing rice repeatedly. She says it is common to wash rice five to seven times until the water runs clear. Coombes says she washes her rice twice instead, adding: “by doing this we can save up five litres of water each time”.


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Coombes demonstrates the method and recommends using leftover rice water to water plants.

In a separate video, journalist Sonia Haria suggests using leftover rice water as a facial toner or spraying it onto hair. “Although there aren’t lots of clinical studies, it is a tried and tested beauty staple,” she says.

The second campaign, “Reviving the Sunnah”, has been launched in partnership with Cambridge Central Mosque and encourages Muslims to reduce water consumption during wudu, the ritual cleansing performed before prayer and, for many Muslims, repeated up to five times a day.

Muslims typically use six to 12 litres of water during each wudu session when using a running tap. Campaign material notes that many people perform wudu under a running tap, which can use around six litres of water every minute. It refers to the Sunnah, stating that the Prophet performed wudu with one Mudd, approximately one litre of water, and urges Muslims to “Make wudu the Prophetic way”.

Imam Sejad Mekic of Cambridge Central Mosque demonstrates the practice using a one-litre jug.

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The campaign has faced criticism over its cost, particularly given that around three billion litres of water are lost through leaks every day.

Conservative shadow cabinet office minister Mike Wood said families already dealing with steep bill increases “will not be best pleased” that their money is being spent on “bizarre schemes” aimed at changing longstanding practices.

(With inputs from TOI)