HR2883-119

What This Bill Does

The NO TIME TO Waste Act builds a federal food-loss and food-waste system around USDA. It creates a USDA Office of Food Loss and Waste with responsibilities for research, greenhouse-gas quantification, progress reports toward a 50 percent reduction from 2016 levels by 2030, education, model policies, and a data grant program. It authorizes 1.5 million dollars per year for the office and 2 million dollars per year for food-waste policy data grants from fiscal years 2026 through 2030, with a 10 percent nonfederal match. It creates USDA regional coordinators, authorizes 1 million dollars for them, and authorizes 2 million dollars per year for State and Tribal block grants for food recovery infrastructure and innovative distribution models. It requires USDA, EPA, and FDA coordination, annual reports, quarterly meetings with other agencies, federal contractor food-waste and donation reporting, and biennial agency reports. It broadens composting and food-waste reduction pilots to State and Tribal governments, funds public-private partnership grants at 2 million dollars per year with a 50 percent match, and authorizes 2 million dollars per year for a national food-waste education and awareness campaign.

Who Benefits and How

State, local, municipal, and Tribal governments benefit because the bill creates data grants, recovery-infrastructure block grants, composting pilot access, and public-private partnership grants. Food recovery organizations benefit from regional coordinators, infrastructure funding, technical support, and partnerships with governments and private food businesses. Consumers benefit from a national campaign explaining date labels, storage, meal planning, composting, upcycled foods, and food-safety versus freshness. USDA food-loss researchers benefit from a dedicated office, regional partner institutions, model-policy data, and grant priorities for food-loss and waste work.

Who Bears the Burden and How

The USDA Secretary and Office of Food Loss and Waste must run the office, grant programs, regional coordinators, reports, model policies, and education campaign. EPA and FDA officials must coordinate with USDA through the 2020 food-loss and waste agreement, annual reports, and quarterly interagency meetings. Federal food contractors must report efforts to prevent and reduce food waste, food waste from contract activities, and donated food. Grant recipients must provide required nonfederal matches, collect data, measure results, and publish or submit reports.

Key Provisions

• Creates a USDA Office of Food Loss and Waste and authorizes 1.5 million dollars per year for fiscal years 2026 through 2030.
• Authorizes 2 million dollars per year for food-waste policy data grants and 2 million dollars per year for food recovery block grants.
• Requires USDA, EPA, FDA, and other federal agencies to coordinate, report annually, and share procurement best practices.
• Requires federal food contractors and executive agencies to report food-waste prevention, waste, and donation information.
• Expands composting and food-waste reduction pilots to State and Tribal governments and improves access for smaller and rural applicants.
• Funds public-private partnership grants and a national food-waste education campaign at 2 million dollars per year each.