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EPA, U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the Food and Drug Administration Request Comment on Draft National Strategy for Reducing Food Loss and Waste and Recycling Organics
EPA, USDA, and FDA are pleased to announce the draft National Strategy for Reducing Food Loss and Waste and Recycling Organics. This strategy is part of EPA’s series of strategies on building a more circular economy for all.
The goal of the strategy is to prevent the loss and waste of food, where possible, increase recycling of food and other organic materials to support a more circular economy for all, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, save households and businesses money, and build cleaner, healthier communities. The actions detailed in this strategy will help the U.S. meet its national food loss and waste reduction goal to halve food loss and waste. They will also contribute to meeting the national recycling goal to achieve a 50% recycling rate by 2030 and to global achievement of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal Target 12.3.
The strategy identifies concrete steps, and complementary EPA, USDA, and FDA actions, that will accelerate the prevention of food loss and waste, and the recycling of the remaining organic waste across the entire supply chain. The four main objectives of the strategy are:
- Prevent the loss of food where possible.
- Prevent the waste of food where possible.
- Increase the recycling rate for all organic waste.
- Support policies that incentivize and encourage food loss and waste prevention and organics recycling.
Check out these related resources:
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EPA Launches New Composting Webpages and Community Composting Videos
On December 12, 2023, EPA released a series of short videos highlighting the environmental, social and economic benefits of community composting. The videos were developed with support from the Institute for Local Self-Reliance.
Check out the new community composting webpage and view the videos
EPA also made updates across its composting webpages. There is an updated Composting homepage, plus updates to the Composting at Home and Approaches to Composting webpages, which both provide more detailed and technical information on different methods and models of composting.
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EPA Announces Research Funding for Two Small Businesses for Recycling Technologies
Last month, EPA announced nearly $3.2 million in research funding for eight small businesses to further develop and commercialize their environmental technologies. Recipients of this year's Small Business Innovation Research Phase II funding include two companies who are developing recycling technologies. Kamilo, Inc. (San Francisco, Calif.) will develop an innovative approach to track, calculate, and verify the percentage of recycled content used in new plastic products. Zabble, Inc. (Walnut Creek, Calif.) will develop an artificial-intelligence-based tagging platform to improve recycling by monitoring contamination audits. Learn more about this year's awardees.
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New Survey on Household Wasted Food
A new MITRE-Gallup report on the State of Food Waste in America shares data and trends collected from over 9,000 households, including user-reported food waste measurements. One key finding of this report is that the average household wastes 6.2 cups of food in a typical week. View the full report.
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A Model for a Pay-As-You-Throw Program
The Natural Resources Defense Council and Environmental Law Institute developed a "Model Ordinance Establishing a Pay-As-You-Throw Program for Municipal Solid Waste”. The goals of the ordinance are:
- To decrease landfilling and incineration of municipal solid waste in favor of source reduction, and materials and organics recycling.
- To establish a transparent fee structure where people pay based on the amount of waste they generate, which means paying more for trash than for compostables and recyclables.
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New Roadmap for Reducing Food Loss and Waste
In December 2023, approximately 50 expert organizations including ReFED, Wrap Recycling Action Program, the Food and Land Use Coalition, and World Resources Institute released ”Reducing Food Loss & Waste: A Roadmap for Philanthropy.” The roadmap shows how governments, philanthropy, and the private sector can take a big bite out of emissions while improving food security, nutrition, incomes, and the environment. Read the full global roadmap.
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EPA Environmental and Climate Justice Community Change Grants Program
EPA’s Office of Environmental Justice and External Civil Rights is awarding approximately $2 billion in grants to fund community-drive projects that address climate challenges and reduce pollution while strengthening communities through thoughtful implementation. The Inflation Reduction Act provided the funds for this grant program. Eligible entities include partnerships between two community-based organizations or a partnership between a CBO and a local government, federally-recognized tribes, or institutes of higher education.
Objectives of the grant program are:
- To provide resources for community-driven projects to address environmental and climate challenges in communities facing disproportionate and adverse health, pollution, and environmental impacts, and suffering from generations of disinvestment.
- To invest in strong cross-sectoral collaborations with partners who bring a robust commitment to working with and for communities with environmental and climate justice concerns.
- To unlock access to additional and more significant resources to advance environmental and climate justice goals from across the federal government and other sources.
- To empower communities and strengthen their capacity to drive meaningful positive change on the ground for years to come.
- To strengthen community participation in government decision-making processes that impact them.
Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis with initial award selections beginning in March 2024. The final application deadline is November 21, 2024.
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EPA Climate Pollution Reduction Grants
EPA is making available $4.6 billion across two implementation grant competitions, one general competition, and one specifically for Tribes and territories. Under these funding opportunities, eligible applicants will compete for climate pollution reduction implementation grants to fund measures in their state-, municipality-, Tribe-, or territory-specific climate action plans. As part of its application evaluation, EPA will prioritize measures that achieve the greatest reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. Measures that address waste and materials management are within the scope.
The deadline to apply to the general competition is April 1, 2024. The deadline to apply to the Tribes and territories competition is May 1, 2024. EPA estimates that the implementation grants will be awarded in fall 2024 for the general competition and in winter 2024-2025 for the Tribes and territories competition.
For more information, please visit:
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EPA’s 2024 President’s Environmental Student and Teacher Awards
EPA is requesting applications for the 2024 President’s Environmental Youth Awards and Presidential Innovation Awards for Environmental Educators. PEYA recognizes outstanding environmental stewardship projects from students in Kindergarten through 12th grade that promote environmental awareness and encourage community involvement. PIAEE recognizes outstanding K–12th grade educators who integrate environmental education and place-based learning into school curricula and school facility management across the country.
Submit your application for both awards no later than Monday, January 15, 2024. Projects eligible for the awards can apply to a variety of environmental topics, including (but not limited to):
- Climate change.
- Environmental justice.
- Water infrastructure.
- Lead in drinking water.
- A reduction in contributions to ocean and marine litter.
- Recycling solutions.
- The use of science, technology, engineering, and math to teach environmental education.
- Environmental sustainability and agricultural practices.
- Healthy school environments.
- The reduction of food waste and loss and excess food recovery efforts.
Check out application and eligibility information on EPA’s PEYA webpage and EPA’s PIAEE webpage.
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USDA’s Rural Energy for America Program Renewable Energy Systems & Energy Efficiency Improvement Guaranteed Loans & Grants
This program provides guaranteed loan financing and grant funding to agricultural producers and rural small businesses for renewable energy systems or to make energy efficiency improvements. Agricultural producers may also apply for new energy efficient equipment, as well as new system loans for agricultural production and processing. Funds may be used for the purchase and installation of renewable energy systems, including anaerobic digesters.
Application Window Closing Dates:
- January 31, 2024.
- December 31, 2023.
- March 31, 2024.
- June 30, 2024.
- September 30, 2024.
Visit the USDA Rural Energy for America Grants webpage for more details.
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Mention of or referral to commercial products or services, and/or links to non-EPA sites does not imply official EPA endorsement of or responsibility for the opinions, ideas, data, or products presented at those locations, or guarantee the validity of the information provided. Mention of commercial products/services on non-EPA websites is provided solely as a pointer to information on topics related to environmental protection that may be useful to EPA staff and the public.
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By subscribing to the newsletter, you will receive periodic announcements about resources, events, webinars, funding opportunities, and more from EPA and our partners. Topics include circular economy, reduce/reuse/recycle, food loss and waste, electronics, plastics, municipal solid waste, and the built environment.
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