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Basic Information about Food Waste
Food Waste
Americans throw away more than 25 percent of the
food we prepare, about 96 billion pounds of food
waste each year according to the US Department of
Agriculture's Estimating
and Addressing America's Food Losses PDF)
(11 pp, 101K, about
PDF). Food waste includes uneaten food
and food preparation scraps from residences or households,
commercial establishments like restaurants, grocery
stores, and cafeterias. Waste
Not, Want Not: Feeding the Hungry and Reducing Solid
Waste Through Food Recovery (PDF) (59
pp, 1.5MB, about
PDF), a joint publication of EPA and
USDA, states the nation spends about one billion
dollars a year to dispose of food waste. How much
of your food and money are you literally throwing
away? Business schools teach that waste is a sign
of inefficiency. The food
service industry 
estimates that 4% to 10% of food purchases become
waste before ever reaching a guest. How efficiently
are you using your hard-earned food dollars? Use
the information and resources on this Web site to
find out how you can reduce waste, save money, and
help protect the environment.
Total Municipal Solid Waste Generation, 2007: Click on Chart to View Information in Text Format
Environmental Benefits
The amount of food waste generated in the US is huge. It is the third largest waste stream after paper and yard waste. In 2008, almost 12.7 percent of the total municipal solid waste (MSW) generated in America was food scraps. Less than three percent of that 32 million tons was recovered and recycled. The rest - 32 million tons - was thrown away into landfills or incinerators.
The decomposition of food and other organic waste materials under anaerobic (without oxygen) conditions in landfills produces methane, a greenhouse gas (GHG) 21 times more potent than carbon dioxide. Landfills are the largest human-related source of methane in the United States, accounting for 34 percent of all methane emissions. Reducing, recovering, and recycling diverts organic materials from landfills and incinerators, thereby reducing GHG emissions from landfills and waste combustion. And the use of recycled food waste (compost) has a myriad of environmental benefits such as improving soil health and structure, increasing drought resistance, as well as reducing, and even eliminating, the need for supplemental water, fertilizers, and pesticides. Think of it as "feeding the soil."
An additional benefit of food waste reduction, donation, and composting is improved sanitation, public safety and health for both your facility and community. Food wastes dumped in standard trash cans and dumpsters in the back ally of a home, store or restaurant can attract rodents, insects, and other problem visitors - as well as smelling really bad. By placing food in a closed container which is nonabsorbent, leakproof, durable, easily cleanable (if reusable) then having it frequently picked up for donation or composting you can significantly reduce, and even eliminate these problems.
