SB3443, the Zero Food Waste Act, would require the EPA Administrator to establish a program that awards competitive grants to eligible entities—including states, local governments, territorial governments, tribal governments, nonprofits, or partnerships—to study food waste generation and to develop plans that reduce waste generation. It also authorizes data collection and reporting on food waste quantities, and funds projects to reduce waste through prevention, rescue, upcycling, recycling, and policies to discourage disposal in landfills or incineration.
The act also imposes anaerobic digestion project requirements and sets a 2015 baseline with a 50% reduction target by 2035.
The program would prioritize diverse locations and communities, require letters of support for nonprofit applicants, and provide public data reporting. It would authorize $650 million annually from 2026 through 2035, to be available until expended.
At a Glance
What It Does
Establishes an EPA-run competitive grant program to fund three categories: study and planning, data collection and reporting, and on-the-ground food waste reduction projects.
Who It Affects
Eligible entities include states, local/territorial governments, tribal governments, nonprofits, and partnerships. Public data reports would be accessible; prioritization targets communities with greater health and environmental burdens.
Why It Matters
Creates a scalable mechanism for measuring and reducing food waste, supports local infrastructure, and builds markets for recovered organics, with a long-term emissions and waste diversion benefit.
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What This Bill Actually Does
The bill sets up an EPA-administered grant program designed to reduce the amount of food waste generated and disposed of in landfills or incinerators. Grants are to be awarded competitively to eligible entities—states, local or territorial governments, tribal governments, nonprofit organizations, or partnerships among these groups—to study how much food waste is produced in their area and to develop plans that include at least one concrete food waste reduction activity.
A key aim is to prioritize prevention and to direct efforts toward policies that lower disposal or incineration. In addition to planning support, the program can fund data collection on waste generation and publish periodic reports that illuminate trends and progress.
A separate track funds projects that implement or support reduction activities, including incentives, technical assistance, and disposal restrictions, with an eye toward creating demand for recycled or repurposed organics. The bill also requires anaerobic digestion programs to include end-product recycling plans and imposes limits on the use of animal waste in digesters, while requiring use of source separated organics for the non-animal portion of feedstock.
The target outcome is a 50 percent reduction in food waste by 2035 relative to 2015 levels. Finally, the act authorizes a substantial funding envelope—$650 million per year from 2026 through 2035—intended to remain available until expended, and imposes annual reporting to Congress and to the public on progress and lessons learned.
The Five Things You Need to Know
The EPA will award competitive grants to eligible entities (states, local/territorial/Tribal governments, nonprofits, or partnerships) to study waste generation and develop reduction plans.
Grants funds three activity tracks: study/planning, data collection and reporting, and actual reduction projects.
For anaerobic digestion projects, grantees must submit end-product recycling plans and limit animal waste to 20% of feedstock, using source separated organics for the remainder.
The program targets a 50% reduction in food waste by 2035 (baseline 2015).
Authorized funding is $650 million per year for 2026–2035, available until expended.
Section-by-Section Breakdown
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Definitions
Defines the Administrator as the EPA head; eligible entities as states, local/territorial governments, tribal governments, nonprofits, or partnerships; and key terms such as food waste, food waste reduction activity, nonprofit organization (501(c)(3)), and the core actions—prevent, rescue, recycle, upcycle. It also clarifies what counts as source separated organics (including ASTM standards) and what does not (mixed solid waste). These definitions anchor the grant program and set boundaries for eligible activities.
Program Establishment and Purpose
The EPA will establish and operate a grant program to reduce food waste, with a target of lowering waste disposed of in landfills or incineration by 50 percent by 2035 from 2015 levels. The program is designed to fund studies of waste generation and policy responses, plus the development of actionable plans that implement at least one food waste reduction activity in each grant. A complementary data and reporting track supports transparency and learning across grantees.
Grants: Types and Subcategories
Grants fall into three main categories: (A) study on food waste generation and planning; (B) data collection and public reporting on waste quantities; and (C) food waste reduction projects. Within (C), grant activities can include implementing reduction projects, promoting differential pricing to discourage disposal, providing technical assistance, imposing restrictions on disposal, and supporting end-market recycling or other related activities. This section also contemplates data reporting mirroring the data track in (B).
Applications
Eligible entities apply to the Administrator with evidence of how the grant will be used to meet the program’s objectives. Nonprofit applications must include letters of support from relevant local or state authorities or from another nonprofit that has demonstrated regional experience and would not participate directly in the proposed use of funds.
Prioritization of Grants
The Administrator must prioritize grants to achieve geographic and programmatic diversity and to help entities lacking sufficient infrastructure or resources. Priority goes to non-profit-led programs with demonstrated local need, and to projects in communities of color, low-income communities, or Tribal communities disproportionately affected by environmental or health burdens.
Reporting
Grant recipients must report outcomes and relevant data to the Administrator, who will compile and publish an annual public report detailing the program’s effectiveness in reducing food waste and sharing best practices for grantees to scale results.
Funding
The act authorizes $650 million in appropriations for each fiscal year from 2026 through 2035, with funds remaining available until expended. This establishes a long runway for building capacity across states, localities, tribes, and nonprofit partners.
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Explore Environment in Codify Search →Who Benefits and Who Bears the Cost
Every bill creates winners and losers. Here's who stands to gain and who bears the cost.
Who Benefits
- State governments gain funding to study waste generation and to shape state-level policies.
- Local governments and territorial governments receive grants to implement waste reduction activities and pilot programs.
- Tribal governments gain targeted support for reducing food waste in their communities.
- Nonprofit organizations can partner to administer and execute projects and facilitate community engagement.
- Communities disproportionately affected by environmental harms—such as communities of color and low-income communities—stand to benefit from prioritized funding and project placements.
Who Bears the Cost
- EPA will incur ongoing administrative costs to run and monitor the grant program.
- Eligible entities incur up-front costs to prepare applications and to implement grant-funded activities.
- Some local and state governments may need to invest in infrastructure or systems for data collection and reporting.
- Nonprofit organizations may bear administrative burdens and reporting requirements associated with grant management.
- Wider public or taxpayers fund the appropriations needed to support the program.
Key Issues
The Core Tension
The central tension is between designing a grant program that is flexible enough to enable diverse local solutions and the need for uniform, measurable progress toward a national 2035 reduction target, all while balancing environmental safeguards and economic practicality.
The bill sensibly pairs a grant-making framework with measurable goals, but it introduces policy tensions that require careful implementation. First, the success of the program hinges on grantees turning funding into actual waste reductions rather than into more data collection or administrative activity.
The balance between studying waste, piloting programs, and achieving real on-the-ground changes will require rigorous performance metrics and independent verification. Second, the anaerobic digestion provisions—especially limits on animal waste and the requirement that digesters utilize source-separated organics—could constrain project feasibility in some regions and push activity toward certain feedstocks or partner ecosystems.
Finally, the 2035 reduction target is ambitious; ensuring that the 2015 baseline is accurate and that data collection methods are comparable across jurisdictions will be essential for credible progress tracking.
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