Wasted Food Programs and Resources Across the United States

• Harvard Food Law and Policy Clinic: Tool Kit Keeping Food out of the Landfill - Policy Ideas for States and Localities (PDF) (84 pp, 6.7MB)is a resource for state and local policymakers interested in reducing food waste. The toolkit brings together lessons in date labeling, tax incentives, liability protections, organic waste bans, leftovers for livestock as well as other food waste policies, to provide state and local policy makers with a comprehensive menu of policy options to reduce food waste.

• Spoiler Alert: Food Waste Reduction & Food Donation Resources for New England is a resource for anyone who manages food that lists state-specific information on best practices for food donation, legal information on your state’s waste ban, how to find local food banks and rescue programs, and toolkits on managing organic waste and composting.

• Northeast Recycling Council: Special Event Food Waste Diversion Guide is a guide for managing vendors and food waste disposal at outdoor fairs, concerts and other special events.
   
• The Center for EcoTechnologyhas developed the Wasted Food Solutions websitethat highlights resources from the six New England states.

• Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Commercial Organics Ban took effect on October 1, 2014 and states that a commercial food wholesaler or distributor, industrial food manufacturer or processor, supermarket, resort or conference center that generates a projected annual volume of 104 or more tons per year of source separated organic material, and is located within 20 miles of a permitted recycling facility that can accept that material, then those materials must be recycled.
   
• The Center for EcoTechnologyhas developed the Wasted Food Solutions website that highlights resources from Connecticut.

• Maine Department of Environmental Protection Composting information provides resources and guidance developed by the State of Maine.
   
• The Center for EcoTechnologyhas developed the Wasted Food Solutions website that highlights resources from Maine.

Massachusetts

• Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection Statewide Commercial Organics Disposal Ban took effect on October 1, 2014 and states that businesses and institutions that dispose of one ton or more of source separated organic materials per week divert food wastes from disposal to composting, conversion, recycling or reuse, recovery for donation or animal feed.
   
• Recyclingworks Massachusetts is a Statewide program that provides technical assistance to Massachusetts businesses and institutions is a state sponsored program that provides technical assistance to businesses and institutions to reduce waste including food waste. A variety of tools and resources have been developed to support generators including food donation best management practices and other topics.
   
• The Center for EcoTechnologyhas developed the Wasted Food Solutions website that highlights resources from Massachusetts.

• New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services Best Management Practices for Food Waste Composting (PDF)(111 pp, 17.6 MB, About PDF) (see page 27) provides information for solid waste facilities in the state.
• The Center for EcoTechnologyhas developed the Wasted Food Solutions website that highlights resources from New Hampshire.

• Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management Food Waste Ban took effect on January 1, 2016 and applies only to organic waste producing institutions generating more than 104 tons per year (two tons per week). Food waste generators are exempt from recycling their materials if there is not a composting or anaerobic digestion facility within 15 miles of the institution’s location.
   
• The Center for EcoTechnologyhas developed the Wasted Food Solutions website that highlights resources from Rhode Island.

• Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation Universal Recycling Law (Act 148), effectively bans disposal of traditional recyclables, leaf and yard waste, and food scraps found in Vermonters' trash bins. Specifically, food scrap (organic, compostable kitchen wastes) diversion began in a phased approach on July 1, 2014 targeting food scrap generators greater than 2 tons per week and located within 20 miles of certified (composting, anaerobic digestion) facility. Diversion continues to ramp up by all size generators over time and by 2020, all food scraps, including those from households, must be diverted with no exemption for distance.
   
• The Center for EcoTechnologyhas developed the Wasted Food Solutions website that highlights resources from Vermont.

• Information on anaerobic digestion from the state Department of Environmental Conservation

• Information on food scraps and yard waste disposal in New York City

• Information about composting food scraps at Greenmarket

• City Harvest Food Rescue in New York City

• Information about composting in the City of Albany

• Food Bank of Western New York (Serving Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Erie, and Niagara Counties)

• Information about state composting regulations

Local food banks:

• Fulfill (formerly the FoodBank of Monmouth and Ocean Counties)
• Food Bank of South Jersey
• Community FoodBank of New Jersey

• Composting in the City of Montgomery (2 pp, 1.17 M, About PDF)
• Alabama Department of Environmental Management is in charge of solid waste programming in the state.

• Florida Department of Environmental Protection has information on statewide composting efforts and provides technical assistance for organic recycling programs.
• Florida Organics Recycling Center for Excellence is a state funded organization dedicated to advancing composting in Florida through research, events and education.
• Florida Department of Agriculture has a wealth of information about composting, curriculum guides, as well as Florida’s Food Recovery Resource Guide(40 pp, 4.4 M, About PDF), which provides guidance to individuals, corporations and nonprofits.

• Foodwell Alliance connects people and resources across Metro Atlanta to amplify and accelerate the local food movement through community gardens, grants and workshops.
• Georgia Organics is a nonprofit that has resources for teachers and cafeteria workers to implement farm to school resources, along with an interactive map to find local food resources in Georgia.
• Atlanta Community Food Bank is a nonprofit that takes industry donations, as well as private donations for food across the Atlanta area. 
• Environmental Protection Division is in charge of solid waste programs in the state, and has an interactive map for composting operations in the state.

• Department for Environmental Protection Recycling and Local Assistance Program
• Organics Recovery Program Development Tool(66 pp, 2.2 M, About PDF) was created by the Environmental Finance Center at the University of Louisville in conjugation with EPA, to assist colleges and universities with organizing or expanding organics recovery programs.
• GleanKY is an organization that gleans (aka, collects) excess produce from grocery stores, supermarkets, farms, orchards and farmers’ markets. It reduces local food waste and provides fruits and vegetable for more than 50 food pantries and meal programs.
• Seedleaf works to increase the amount, affordability, nutritional value and sustainability of food available to people at risk of hunger in central Kentucky by growing, recycling and sharing food.

• Department of Environmental Quality Composting Program and Managing Food Scraps for a Sustainable Food System curriculum (41 pp, 73.6 K, About PDF)

• North Carolina Organics Recycling & Composting provides information on grant programs, compost facilities statewide and state contacts.
• North Carolina Association of Feeding America Food Banks an interactive map for identifying food banks for donations across the state.
• Department of Environmental Quality financial opportunities offers financial support to recycling based business in the form of grants and loans.

• Don’t Waste Food S.C. is a collaborative campaign between the public and private sectors. The website offers information on food labels, composting for businesses and at home composting.
• South Carolina Department of Agriculture provides information on where and how to buy local, as well as farmer’s markets across the state.
• Action for a Cleaner Tomorrow is a K-12 curriculum materials about recycling.
• South Carolina Food Bank Association has contact information and areas served by four member food banks.
• Loaves and Fishes and Harvest Hope are food banks that collaborate with state Department of Health and Environmental Control to aid in food recycling programs.

• Department of Environment and Conservation Organics information and 2016 Food Waste Reduction Policy Paper (7 pp, 226.72 K, About PDF)
• Metro Nashville has information on backyard composting and services available in the Nashville area.
• Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation provides resources on commercial, industrial and residential composting.
• Green Hospitality Program is a program with restaurants, welcome centers and hotels to create and promote a more sustainable state.
• Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation offers a grant program for organics management for municipalities and nonprofit organizations.

• Get Food Smart TN is a statewide initiative whose mission is to promote using food wisely and to enhance the sustainability of Tennessee’s food resources. Get Food Smart TN provides technical assistance and resources to consumers, restaurants, grocers, businesses, government entities, nonprofits and other entities to help combat food waste in Tennessee.

Illinois

• The Illinois Food Scrap Coalition is a group of solid waste agencies, counties, community and government organizations, businesses, schools, institutions, service providers, and processors dedicated to advancing food scrap composting in Illinois through program implementation, policy, and advocacy. It is also a participating state chapter of the U.S. Composting Council. 

• The Illinois Recycling Association acts as the collective voice for recycling on critical waste management issues at the state level.

• The Illinois Wasted Food Action Alliance is comprised of a diverse set of organizations helping build a unified approach towards reducing and diverting wasted food.
• Overview of regulatory requirements for composting facilities (PDF) from the state’s Environmental Protection Agency. 

Indiana

• The Indiana Recycling Coalition represents the Indiana Food Scrap Initiative, a multi-stakeholder group which explores the issues behind wasted food and supports the reduction of wasted food across the state.

• Overview of composting from the Department of Environmental Management

Michigan

• The Michigan Recycling Coalition, through its Michigan Organics Council, works to bring together organics generators, processors, and end users to network, share best practices, and promote diversion of organics and utilization of compost and other end products. In November 2017, the Michigan Organics Council voted to become Michigan's charter chapter of the U.S. Composting Council.

• Overview of solid waste information and regulations from the Department of Environmental Quality

• The Minnesota Composting Council is the Minnesota state chapter of the U.S. Composting Council. As a state affiliate of the U.S. Composting Council, it is dedicated to the development, expansion, and promotion of the composting industry based upon sound science, principles of sustainability, and economic viability. 

• The Recycling Association of Minnesota is committed to promoting resource conservation through waste prevention, reuse, recycling, composting and purchasing practices using the most cost effective and environmentally sound methods available in Minnesota.

• Minnesota Pollution Control Agency’s information on recycling and composting

• The Ohio Organics Council, a nonprofit organization and the Ohio chapter of the U.S. Composting Council, promotes the growth of the organics recycling industry in Ohio by encouraging further study, research, advancement, and development of composting and organic recycling through professionalism, education, training, information exchange and networking within the industry and with regulatory agencies.

• Overview of the Ohio Food Scraps Recovery Initiative from the state’s Environmental Protection Agency

Wisconsin

• Overview of the composting and recycling processes and regulations from the Department of Natural Resources  

• University of Arkansas Food Recovery Project
• Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance
• Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality composting information(2 pp, 219 K, About PDF)

• Backyard composting information(4 pp, 423 K, About PDF)
• Agricultural Solid Waste Best Management Practices Guidelines(4 pp, 538 K, About PDF)

• New Mexico Recycling Coalition Food Waste Diversion Program
• Food Not Bombs
• Bernalillo County Extension Master Composter Program
• NM Environment Department composting information

• Backyard and Worm Composting information from Compost Everything, a resource for composting based in Tulsa.
• Backyard composting information from the Oklahoma Cooperative Extension(4 pp, 337 K, About PDF)
• Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality's Use Less Stuff Campaign
• Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality's Composting Rules(155 pp, 2.1 M, About PDF)
• School Composting and Worm Composting Resources(4 pp, 82.6 K, About PDF)
• Worm composting classroom activity(4 pp, 201 K, About PDF)

• Master Composter Training
• Texas Commission on Environmental Quality information about composting
• Resources in Austin
  • The city plans to expand its Universal Recycling Ordinance to include compostables with comprehensive organics collection from all sectors throughout the city to be fully implemented by 2016. The city's Master Plan( 321 pp, 36.8 M, About PDF) considers the highest and best use of food waste and acknowledges the use of compost to enrich soil and strengthen sustainable food production.
  • The city provides a Zero Waste Event Rebate as a financial incentive for event organizers to make their outdoor events more sustainable and help reduce the amount of trash sent to area landfills.
• Resources in Dallas/Ft. Worth:
  • FoodSource DFW is a nonprofit organization that strives to reduce waste, and distribute food and resources to people and families in need.
  • Equal Heart delivers federally funded meals free of charge to children at after-school and summer sites throughout the country.
  • University of North Texas Health Science Center Office of Sustainability Food Outreach(2 pp, 8.2 M, About PDF)
  • Melissa Feeders is a family owned company specializing in all areas of the beef and dairy beef industries that uses food waste for animal feed.

• The Food Rescue Partnership is a community-focused coalition committed to rescuing food throughout the Quad Cities that would otherwise be thrown away, by informing and engaging the public, and by fostering partnerships among food establishments, the Foodbank, food pantries, meal sites, and shelters.

• Information from the City of Iowa City about local residential curbside composting, home composting and strategies for reducing wasted food

• The Iowa Waste Reduction Center is a nationally recognized organization at the University of Northern Iowa devoted to environmental consulting, assistance, training and education for entities with environmental impact or need. It provides information on reducing and diverting food waste.

• To assist Iowa schools in addressing food waste, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources and the Iowa Department of Education partnered to produce this Food Waste Minimization Toolkit for Iowa Schools to assist school administrators and nutrition staff in maintaining a sustainable balance in reducing food insecurity and waste.

• Kansas State University Pollution Prevention Institute offers a food donation mapping tool by county and provides local case studies and technical guidance to redue food waste.
• Johnson County Department of Health and Environment Food Policy Council promotes a healthy community by offering guidance on reducing consumer food waste and advocating for equitable access to healthy food.

• The Green Dining Alliance offers a restaurant sustainability certification program that works with restaurants to reduce their environmental impact by having them complete an on-site audit, evaluating all areas of operations and setting personalized goals.

• The Mid-America Regional Council (MARC) Solid Waste Management District's Recycle Spot offers tips for reducing food waste at home and in the community. 

• Missouri Recycling Association seeks to increase food donation and keep excess food from going to state landfills.
   
• The Composting and Organics Association of Missouri is dedicated to the development, expansion and promotion of the composting and organics industry throughout Missouri.
   
• The Missouri Botanic Garden's Earthways Center for Sustainability composts and reuses almost 100 percent of their plant and food waste and has a Green Event Guide designed to help individuals and groups put on sustainable events at a community scale.

• Nebraska Recycling Association provides technical and grant assistance to recycling programs and communities state-wide.

• Keep Nebraska Beautiful works to inspire Nebraskans to take actions that improve and beautify our communities.

• The Colorado Food Recovery Network recovers meals from college dining halls and delivers them to local partners to distribute to the community.

• The Growing Project: Food Finders addresses food insecurity by making fresh, nourishing, regional food more accessible to all.

• Garfield County provides information about food rescue and resources through their LiveWell program.

• Boulder Food Rescue is a nonprofit organization whose goal is to create a more just and less wasteful food system. They completed a Food Waste Audit in 2016 to provide information about the state of food waste in Boulder.

• Denver Inner City Parish has one of the original and longest running programs offered by the Denver Inner City Parish.

• Foraged Feast is a Denver-based nonprofit that collects locally grown food that would otherwise go unused or wasted and connects those nutritional food sources with the underserved of our community.

• Food Rescue Alliance is a nonprofit organization whose goal is to create a more just and less wasteful food system. They redistribute food “waste” to agencies who serve hungry, homeless and low-income individuals while educating communities about food justice.

• Denver Food Rescue is a nonprofit focused on improving health equity outcomes by increasing access to healthy foods in low income areas.

• As an innovative provider of food for the hungry, We Don’t Waste collects excess food from venues, caterers, restaurants, and other food purveyors and distributes the food to Denver’s under-served populations.

• Produce for Pantries encourages home, school and community gardeners to plant, grow and share produce with food pantries and hunger-relief organizations in their neighborhoods.

• Care and Share Food Bank for Southern Colorado exists to ensure that the one in seven Southern Coloradans at risk of hunger have access to enough healthy and nutritious food to thrive.

• Colorado Springs Food Rescue volunteers sustainably recover food seven days a week from donor businesses around the Pikes Peak region and deliver it directly to local nonprofit partnership programs.

• Denver Yard Harvest brings fresh produce that would otherwise go waste to people who might otherwise go without it, building community and learning more about the importance of healthy food and reducing waste.

• Ecotrust Food Hub is an online platform that connects farmers, ranchers, fishermen and specialty producers with wholesale food buyers in their region.

• Grow Montana is a broad-based food policy coalition whose common purpose is to promote community economic development and education policies that support sustainable Montana-owned food production, processing, and distribution, and that improve everyone’s access to healthy Montana foods.

• Helena Community Gardens builds gardens, provides the tools and knowledge to grow food, and increases access to healthy and affordable food.

• Local Food works to increase the visibility of local producers that use sustainable agricultural techniques and the business establishments that carry their products.

• Montana Food Bank Network is a nonprofit that works to end hunger in Montana through food acquisition and distribution, education and advocacy.

• Montana Sustainable Growers Union is a group of local farmers who all farm within a 75 mile radius of Missoula and market in the state to promote buying homegrown goods.

• Information about Holy Cross Daily Bread Food Bank from Food Pantries.org

• Hunger Free North Dakota Garden Project is committed to addressing the hunger issue in North Dakota through the local foods initiative. They encourage farmers and gardeners to plant an extra acre or row of produce and donate fresh fruits and vegetable to food pantries, soup kitchens, and other charitable community programs.

• Great Plains Food Bank works to end hunger in North Dakota and western Minnesota through community partnerships.

• Feeding South Dakota (multiple chapters) works to eliminate hunger in South Dakota by working with communities, distributing food to those in need, and advocating at the state and federal level on behalf of the hungry.

• The Utah Food Recovery Network recovers meals from college dining halls and delivers them to local partners to distribute to the community.

• The Utah Food Bank Grocery Rescue Program is a strategic business alliance between Utah Food Bank and Utah retailers that provides a safe and efficient donation outlet for food that is nearing its expiration date, but is still safe, healthy and wholesome to eat.

• Wasatch Food Waste Recovery works with hotels, restaurants, and other food waste producing companies to turn food waste into energy and fertilizer using anaerobic digestion.

• EcoScraps  recycles food scraps into organic and sustainable lawn and garden products.

• Hole Food Rescue is a nonprofit organization that works to reduce food waste and food insecurity in their community.

• Wyoming Food Bank of the Rockies provides food and supplies to more than 500 hunger-relief programs.

• Local Food Recovery Guide in Phoenix

Arizona Department of Environmental Quality Waste Programs: Solid Waste Section

J.B. Shaw
(602) 771-5613
js15@azdeq.gov

• Local Food Recovery Guide in the Bay Area

• Local Food Recovery Guide in Los Angeles

• Local Food Recovery Guide in San Diego area

California's Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery (CalRecycle) Organic Materials Management

Bob Horowitz
(916) 341-6452
Robert.Horowitz@CalRecycle.ca.gov

• Local Food Recovery Guide in Honolulu

Hawaii Department of Health Office of Solid Waste Management

Travis Hiramoto
(808) 586-4226
travis.hiramoto@doh.hawaii.gov

• Local Food Recovery Guide in Las Vegas

• Local Food Recovery Guide in Reno

Nevada Division of Environmental Protection Bureau of Waste Management

Northern Nevada Recycling Coordinator: Patricia Moen
(775) 687-9466
pmoen@ndep.nv.gov

Southern Nevada Recycling Coordinator: Rachel Lewison
(702) 486-2850 x268
rlewison@ndpe.nv.gov

Division of Environmental Health Solid Waste Program

Department of Environmental Quality Solid Waste Rules and Regulations

Department of Environmental Quality Pollution Prevention Guidelines

• Information from the City of Boise on curbside compost collection

Oregon

Department of Environmental Quality Environmental Impacts of Food Waste Management

Oregon 2050 Vision for Materials Management

• Association of Oregon Recyclers is a nonprofit trade association that works to advance recycling and waste prevention in Oregon
   
• Guidelines on preventing wasted food from the City of Beaverton
   
• Guidelines on preventing wasted food from the City of Gresham
   
• Guidelines on preventing wasted food from Washington County
   
• Take the pledge to “Save the Food” with Marion County
   
• Guidelines on food donation and composting from Oregon Metro
   
• Information on garbage, recycling and composting in the City of Portland
   
• City of Eugene - Commercial Food Waste Collection
   

• City of Eugene - Residential Food Waste Collection

• Washington State Recycling Association is a nonprofit membership organization that has been dedicated to supporting waste reduction, reuse, recycling, and composting in Washington since 1976.
• School Food Share Toolkit may help prevent and minimize wasted food in schools, and redirect consumable food to those who need it, through a replicable model for school food recovery.

• Washington Organic Recycling Council is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the sustainable reclamation, reuse and recycling of organic materials.

• Food: Too Good to Waste in the City of Issaquah (FTGTW)
   
• Food: Too Good to Waste in King County
   
• Food: Too Good to Waste in Thurston County
   
• Food: Too Good to Waste in the City of Tacoma
   
• Food waste reduction and gleaning in  Clallam County
   
• Composting guidelines in Whatcom County
   
• Information on gleaning, food donation and community gardening from Harvest Pierce County
   
• Learn to be a Master Composter with Seattle Tilth
   
• Composting guidelines in the City of Seattle