The Reduce Food Loss and Waste Act of 2025 creates a voluntary federal certification program under the Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946. The program, known as the Food Loss and Waste Reduction Certification Program, would certify and promote eligible participants that reduce food loss, donate excess but apparently wholesome food, and use alternative disposal methods when donation isn’t possible.
The act establishes definitions, a certification framework, and a multi‑layered verification system—accreditation bodies and third‑party certifiers—along with a voluntary labeling regime and interagency coordination. It also authorizes funding to stand up and run the program over the next several years.
Why this matters: for compliance and policy professionals, the bill translates waste reduction into a formal certification pathway. If enacted, participating entities could leverage labeling and outreach to signal responsible food management, potentially affecting procurement, grant eligibility, and corporate social responsibility programs.
The act contemplates a structured, auditable process rather than a loose voluntary pledge, and it distributes responsibilities across the USDA, FDA, and EPA, with dedicated funding to get it off the ground.
At a Glance
What It Does
Creates a voluntary Food Loss and Waste Reduction Certification Program within the Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946. It defines key terms, sets certification criteria, and outlines an accreditation and third‑party certifier framework to verify eligible participants.
Who It Affects
A broad set of actors can participate: government contractors, state/local/tribal governments, corporations and associations, farms and food producers, retailers, restaurants, institutions of higher education, and K‑12 schools. It also implicates accreditation bodies and third‑party certifiers that will audit participants.
Why It Matters
This program aims to formalize waste reduction, increase donations of wholesome food, and divert edible surplus to more sustainable uses. By tying certification to public labeling and interagency coordination, it seeks to influence procurement, reporting, and industry practices without mandating specific outcomes.
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What This Bill Actually Does
The legislation creates a voluntary certification program—the Food Loss and Waste Reduction Certification Program—within the USDA’s framework to identify and promote actors who systematically reduce food loss and redirect excess, apparently wholesome food to those in need. It starts with clear definitions: what counts as 'excess' food, what qualifies as 'apparently wholesome,' and who can participate in the program.
The core idea is that eligible participants can seek certification if they meet criteria based on their food donation history and waste management practices, as verified by accredited third‑party certifiers. The Secretary is tasked with establishing these criteria within 18 months of enactment, including requiring documentation of a full year’s activity showing donations or disposal, to demonstrate compliance with the program’s standards.
Certification also carries the promise of public recognition through voluntary labels and Department of Agriculture communications to promote certified participants.
A crucial design feature is the certification ecosystem. The bill sets up a multi‑level process: accreditation bodies must be recognized to accredit third‑party certifiers, who in turn review and certify eligible participants.
The standards are to be informed by stakeholder input and revised periodically, with changes published well in advance. This structure is meant to create credible, auditable verification of a participant’s performance in reducing waste and increasing donations, while avoiding regulatory rigidity.
The act also directs interagency coordination—with the FDA and EPA—so that labeling and certification align with broader food safety and environmental objectives, and it provides funding to support implementation through 2030.Promotion and labeling are central to the program’s incentives. The Secretary would publish lists of accredited certifiers and participating entities and may use voluntary labeling to signal compliance.
The approach is meant to balance flexibility (voluntary participation) with visibility (labels and public information) to encourage wider adoption and standardization across a diverse set of actors—from farms and retailers to schools and universities.
The Five Things You Need to Know
Within 18 months after enactment, the Secretary must establish and publish the criteria for certification of eligible participants.
Eligible participants include government entities, contractors, farms, retailers, restaurants, higher education institutions, and K‑12 schools that donate or manage excess food.
Certification relies on third‑party certifiers accredited by recognized accreditation bodies, who verify participant eligibility using 12 months of documented activity (donations or disposal).
The program includes voluntary labeling and other communications to promote certified participants and their practices.
Authorized appropriations of $3,000,000 per year for fiscal years 2026–2030 fund program administration and staffing.
Section-by-Section Breakdown
Every bill we cover gets an analysis of its key sections.
Food Loss and Waste Reduction Certification Program established
The bill creates a new voluntary program under the Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946, designed to certify and promote practices that reduce food loss and waste, encourage donations of apparently wholesome food to nonprofits, and expand the use of sustainable disposal methods. It defines the program’s purposes and sets the stage for a formal certification framework.
Definitions
Key terms are defined to anchor the program, including 'apparently wholesome food,' 'eligible participant,' 'certified participant,' 'excess,' and 'program.' This section ties the program to existing legal concepts (e.g., Emerson Good Samaritan Act terminology) to clarify what qualifies as donation‑worthy food and who may participate.
Establishment of the program
This section designates the Secretary of Agriculture to establish and promote the Food Loss and Waste Reduction Certification Program, including the governance structure needed to certify and publicly advance certified participants.
Certification criteria and accreditation
The Secretary must set certification criteria within 18 months and create a multi‑layer accrediting system: accreditation bodies to recognize third‑party certifiers, and third‑party certifiers to verify eligible participants. Criteria require documentation of 12 consecutive months of donation or disposal activity, with stakeholder input and periodic revisions.
Promotion and voluntary labeling
The Department will promote certified participants through voluntary labels and related communications, including online listings and outreach events, to raise awareness and credibility of compliant practices.
Interagency coordination
The Secretary must coordinate with the FDA and EPA to align the program with broader health, safety, and environmental objectives, following a revised memorandum of understanding governing cross‑agency cooperation.
Funding and appropriations
The act authorizes $3,000,000 per year for fiscal years 2026–2030 to administer the program, including hiring and necessary program operations, with funds remaining available until expended.
Memorandum of Understanding revision
This section requires updating the interagency MOU among USDA, the FDA, and the EPA to reflect the program’s framework, ensuring coordination on procurement, safety, and environmental outcomes related to food loss and waste.
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Explore Economy 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
- Nonprofit organizations that run food assistance programs gain more reliable access to donations and clearer pathways for distributing surplus to those in need.
- Farmers, food producers, and processors benefit from a structured channel to donate surplus food and demonstrate stewardship.
- Retail grocers and foodservice operators gain a formal mechanism to manage excess inventory and be recognized for waste-reducing practices.
- Institutions of higher education and K‑12 schools can participate, donate surplus, and leverage the program’s standards for community support.
- Accreditation bodies and third‑party certifiers gain a defined market for verification services and potential collaboration with educational institutions.
Who Bears the Cost
- Participants may incur recordkeeping and reporting costs to document 12 months of donation and disposal activity for certification.
- Participants seeking certification bear costs of third‑party certification and potential annual fees to maintain accreditation.
- Certification bodies/accreditation entities must build capacity to review applications and conduct audits, with associated administrative costs.
- The Department of Agriculture would incur ongoing administrative expenses to administer and update criteria, publish lists, and coordinate interagency activities.
Key Issues
The Core Tension
The central dilemma is whether a voluntary, certification-based approach can meaningfully reduce food waste at scale without imposing disproportionate costs on smaller participants or creating a labeling regime that does not translate into real behavioral changes.
Because the program is voluntary, its real impact will hinge on participation rates by a diverse mix of actors and the credibility of third‑party certification. The need to document a full year of activity creates an upfront administrative burden, particularly for smaller entities with limited compliance resources.
While the structure aims to standardize waste reduction and donations, the costs of certification and reporting could deter participation or shift incentives toward those with more robust compliance capabilities. Interagency coordination is essential to avoid duplicative requirements from food safety, environmental, and procurement policies, but alignment across agencies will require careful governance and transparent criteria.
Finally, since labeling is voluntary, the signaling effect will depend on market uptake and consumer or purchaser demand for certified products and practices, which may be uneven across sectors and regions.
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