President Biden Signs Food Donation Improvement Act

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food donation (Credit: Pixabay)

Recently, President Biden signed an amendment to the 1996 Emerson Act, which initially provided certain protections for large entities that donated food to organizations working towards solving food insecurity.

The Food Donation Improvement Act (FDIA) modifies the Emerson Act by calling on the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) to provide updated guidelines around food donation, ultimately helping to reduce the legal liability of donating unsafe food to an organization such as a food bank. It also expands protections for large entities looking to donate food.

The law could potentially reduce the amount of food waste in the US, which is one of the major causes of the country's greenhouse gas emissions while providing clarification and guidance for larger food distributors

At the global level, we waste about 1.4 billion tons of food annually which contributes to 11% of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions. The United States discards more food than any other country in the world – nearly 40 million tons every year. That’s estimated to be 30 to 40% of the entire US food supply. The pandemic highlighted just how many Americans experience food insecurity. Prior to COVID-19, $35 million people across America were classified as food insecure - a number that is closer to $50 million now. 

The EPA set a goal to reduce food loss and waste in half by 2030. Subsequently, creating a  Food Recovery Challenge, based on its food recovery hierarchy, incentivizes organizations to set data-driven goals, implement targeted strategies, and report results to compete for annual recognition from EPA.

Some of the ways to improve the sustainability of food production and supply chains, which could lead to reduced emissions, include helping farmers and producers with better technologies, data, and training. 

Improved technology to increase the shelf life of food and improve crop use as well as investing in efficient materials and packaging can increase our nation's sustainability efforts. Regenerative agriculture and collaborations between tech and grocers are more common ways we see sustainability efforts in the food industry. 

With this new bill, the guidelines will be key to actually getting more people and entities feeling comfortable about giving. Ultimately, transparent communication about the reduced liability and forthcoming USDA standards will help guide the most important food donations to the right sources as quickly as possible.

Environment + Energy Leader