Report: More federal funding, attention on food waste needed in 2018 Farm Bill
Dive Brief:
- The Harvard Food Law and Policy Clinic has released an in-depth report showing the many ways that food waste could be addressed in the 2018 Farm Bill. Nearly two dozen recommendations detail the ways that this legislation could help ongoing efforts to prevent, recover and recycle wasted food through U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) funding and other federal incentives.
- In addition to many common suggestions on standardizing date labels, updating donation laws and expanding education, the report makes a case for widespread infrastructure investment through existing USDA programs. This includes refrigerated trucks and storage space for food recovery, as well as composting and anaerobic digestion facilities for food recycling.
- The report also calls on the federal government to take a more active role in facilitating coordinated efforts on food waste and funding research across all sectors. Recommendations include giving the USDA oversight of the Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Food Donation Act and creating a food waste reduction office, or at least a dedicated position, within the agency.
Dive Insight:
Preliminary discussions about the 2018 Farm Bill are well underway and many see it as the best opportunity to…
