The Biden-Harris Administration, in collaboration with three government agencies recently released the final National Strategy for Reducing Food Loss and Waste and Recycling Organics. The Strategy offers numerous solutions and actions to prevent food loss and waste, enhance recycling of organic waste including food, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and improve tools for measuring food waste and loss.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) worked with the Administration to develop the National Strategy. Three goals drive the Strategy’s initiatives: The National Food Loss and Waste Reduction Goal to reduce food loss and waste by 50 percent, the National Recycling Goal to achieve a 50 percent recycling rate, and United Nations Sustainable Development Goal Target 12.3 to halve per capita global food waste at retail levels and reduce food loss along production and supply chains.
Recently, the three agencies renewed their agreement under the Federal Interagency Collaboration to Reduce Food Loss and Waste (FIFLAW) to continue to work together to address food loss and waste. The partnership was first formed in 2018, and during this renewal, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) also joined in the collaboration, enabling the effort to reach a broader range of international stakeholders.
The FIFLAW agreement notes that 30-40 percent of food produced globally is lost throughout the farm-to-consumer supply chain, and the agencies commit to reducing food loss and waste nationally and internationally.
“By working together, the four agencies in the FIFLAW collaboration can sync our food loss and waste efforts, expanding our reach in a complimentary fashion while minimizing duplication,” Jean Buzby, USDA Food Loss and Waste Liaison, tells Food Tank. But she acknowledges that “the national goal to reduce food loss and waste by 50 percent by 2030 is ambitious, particularly because of the scale of the problem, and that [food loss and waste] occurs from farm to fork for many reasons.” Approximately “one-third of all food produced for human consumption goes uneaten,” she adds.
Prior to the final Strategy’s release, the EPA, the FDA, and the USDA published the Draft National Strategy for Reducing Food Loss and Waste and Recycling Organics, and solicited public comments on the draft report. Over 10,327 comment letters were received including from industry and trade organizations, national and community-based non-profit organizations, government agencies, and private individuals. The comments are summarized in Appendix A of the National Strategy. Around 337 of the submittals were unique, as opposed to largely identical form submissions.
The comments received on the draft national strategy were largely supportive. But some contributors expressed concerns about government involvement in food and potential for food shortages. The comments also focused on increasing the use of anaerobic digestion and mixed waste management, regulating and standardizing date labels, enhancing compost collection, and increasing collaboration beyond the FIFLAW. The report notes that the agencies addressed some of the comments in supplemental documents or stated that they will be taken into consideration separately as funding allows.
The final Strategy also details several sources of funding secured by the agencies for the numerous initiatives and outlines specific tools that are being used and developed to prevent food loss and waste, track trends and progress, and enhance recycling programs. Buzby tells Food Tank that “everyone has a role to play in reducing food loss and waste and there is no single strategy to reach this goal. Government alone can’t solve this problem.”
That’s why the National Strategy highlights specific partnerships that the agencies are forging with national and international organizations, businesses, and governments, as well as with actors at different stages of the food supply chain. Public-private partnerships “will be key [as] we have already seen success by U.S. Food Loss and Waste 2030 Champions,” states Buzby. The 2030 Champions is a similar partnership between USDA, EPA, and approximately 45 private businesses and organizations which have publicly committed to reducing food loss and waste in their operations.
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