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1 1 (September 15, 2023)

handle is hein.crs/govemwb0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Congressional Research Service Informing the Iegiltive debat sce 1914 Policy Issues Involving Food Loss and Waste The 118th Congress has continued to introduce legislation addressing food loss and waste, building on enacted provisions in the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 (P.L. 115-334, 2018 farm bill). The 2018 farm bill created authorities supporting composting initiatives and expanded coordination among federal, state, and local activities at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to reduce the incidence of food loss and waste. Congress may consider changes to federal food loss and waste initiatives as it debates farm bill reauthorization. Terms and Definitions Definitions of food loss and food waste vary and continue to evolve. Neither term is defined in U.S. statute or regulation. In general, food loss refers to unused product at the farm level, such as unharvested crops, but may include loss in other production stages up to (but not including) the retail level. Unharvested crops may be due to, for example, market price volatility, labor cost and availability, cold chain infrastructure, and quality-based contracts and standards, according to USDA. Losses may occur if food is unintentionally damaged or destroyed by pests or mold during the production, manufacturing, transportation, or distribution of food. In contrast, food waste occurs at the retail, food service, and residential levels and refers to food that is ultimately not consumed but is instead discarded or recycled. This may include food that is suitable for human consumption but discarded by retailers or consumers due to quality concerns or undesirable product attributes (such as food not meeting retailers' size, color, and appearance standards, or consumer preferences). This may also include food that is served but not eaten (plate waste), spoiled food, or food considered inedible (such as peels and rinds). Estimated Food Loss and Waste Food loss and waste is associated with a series of policy concerns spanning economic, social, and environmental impacts. Economic impacts occur throughout the supply chain and include financial and disposal costs to food producers, processors, and distributors as well as financial impacts to consumers from food that is uneaten or thrown away. Social impacts include concerns about food insecurity and related nutritional needs. Natural resource and environmental impacts include the use of land, water, energy, and other inputs (including labor) needed to produce, process, and distribute food. Food loss and waste further contribute to greenhouse gas emissions throughout the supply chain and when food is sent to landfills. In the United States, 30%-40% of the food that is produced is unsold and uneaten, according to USDA. This costs the U.S. economy an estimated $218 billion, or 1.3% of GDP, annually. USDA notes that, among other societal impacts, land, water, labor, energy and other inputs are used in producing, processing, transporting, preparing, storing, and disposing of discarded food. The Environmental Updated September 15, 2023 Protection Agency (EPA) estimates that food accounts for 24% of solid waste sent to U.S. landfills. EPA claims this uneaten food contains enough calories to feed far more than the 35 million estimated food insecure Americans. By volume, EPA estimates 62% (66.2 million tons) of wasted food was generated in the retail, food service, and residential sectors. The food manufacturing and processing sectors generated the remaining 38% (40.1 million tons). (See Figure 1.) These data do not include farm-level losses and may be underestimated. Of the estimated tonnage generated in the retail, food service, and residential sectors, an estimated 40% was from households, 40% was from food service providers, and 20% was from food retail. Food loss and waste occurs across all major food groups. Figure I. Estimated Annual Wasted Food Generation Source: EPA, 2019 Wasted Food Report, April 2023 (Table 3-4, 2019 data). Other food service includes schools/colleges, hospitals, nursing homes, hotels, sports venues, military installations, and prisons. Globally, the United Nations claims about one-third of all food produced for human consumption is lost or wasted. Of this, 14% is lost from harvest and the manufacturing and processing sectors (excluding retail) and another 17% is wasted at the retail and consumer levels. Estimates of loss and waste worldwide vary by country, income status, and food type. Growing attention to food loss and waste-and the potential to help address global food insecurity if addressed-is now part of the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (Target 12.3). Administration and Industry Efforts In 2015, USDA and EPA launched the 2030 Food Loss and Waste Reduction Goal, building on prior efforts initiated by both agencies. The goal seeks to reduce food loss and waste by 50% by 2030. In 2018, USDA, EPA, and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) entered into an interagency agreement to coordinate federal food loss and waste efforts. Ongoing federal efforts include investment in USDA's M~nuf~ctvrrng/ Proce~ ng C n 2 n

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