U.S. effort seeks to reduce food waste

As part of the Trump administration’s “Winning on Reducing Food Waste Month,” the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced the release of a federal interagency strategy to address food waste.

The agencies held an event April 9 at EPA headquarters to hear from state, local and community leaders and other stakeholders on how all levels of government can work together to reduce food waste.

Details were provided in a news release from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. “Our nation’s agricultural abundance should be used to nourish those in need, not fill the trash,” U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said in a statement. “As the world’s population continues to grow to nearly 10 billion people by 2050 and the food systems continue to evolve, now is the time for action to educate consumers and businesses alike on the need for food waste reduction. I look forward to what the future holds on this initiative and how we can work together to change the hearts and minds of Americans to reduce food waste.”

The strategy includes six key priority areas the federal agencies will work together on over the next year:

■ Enhance interagency coordination

■ Increase consumer education and outreach efforts

■ Improve coordination and guidance on food loss and waste measurement

■ Clarify and communicate information on food safety, food date labels and food donations

■ Collaborate with private industry to reduce food loss and waste across the supply chain

■ Encourage food waste reduction by federal agencies in their respective facilities

The Winning on Reducing Food Waste Initiative is a collaborative effort among USDA, EPA and FDA to reduce food loss and waste through combined and agency-specific action.

“Individually and collectively, these agencies contribute to the initiative, encourage long-term reductions, and work toward the goal of reducing food loss and waste in the United States,” the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said in its news release. “These actions include research, community investments, education and outreach, voluntary programs, public-private partnerships, tool development, technical assistance, event participation, and policy discussion.”

In the U.S., more than one-third of all available food goes uneaten through loss or waste, the government said.