Zero Food Waste Act
Summary
What This Bill Does
The Zero Food Waste Act directs EPA to establish competitive grants to reduce food waste by 50 percent by 2035 relative to 2015. Grants may fund studies of food waste generation and reduction policies, plans prioritizing prevention, data collection and monthly or quarterly public reports, food waste reduction activities, differential pricing that discourages landfilling or incineration, technical assistance, disposal restrictions, food waste reduction requirements, demand-stimulating policies for recycling end markets, and other EPA-approved activities. Eligible entities include states, local governments, territorial governments, Tribal governments, nonprofits, and partnerships. EPA must prioritize diverse locations, entities with active or needed food waste programs, and communities of color, low-income communities, or Tribal communities facing disproportionate health or environmental effects. Anaerobic digestion projects must have end-product recycling plans, cap animal waste at 20 percent of feedstock, and use source-separated organics. The bill authorizes 650 million dollars per year for fiscal years 2026 through 2035.
Who Benefits and How
State governments, local governments, territorial governments, Tribal governments, nonprofits, and partnerships benefit from a large EPA grant program. Low-income communities, communities of color, Tribal communities, food rescue programs, recyclers, and residents near landfills or incinerators benefit if grants prevent disposal and redirect surplus food.
Who Bears the Burden and How
EPA staff must run grants, prioritize awards, set anaerobic digestion guidelines, track data, and report annually to Congress and the public. Grantees must apply, report results, collect and publish data, comply with animal-waste and source-separated-organics limits for anaerobic digestion, and may have to impose pricing or disposal restrictions. Landfill and incinerator operators may lose waste volume. Federal taxpayers bear the 650 million dollar annual authorization.
Key Provisions
- Creates EPA competitive grants to reduce food waste 50 percent by 2035.
- Funds studies, plans, data reports, prevention, rescue, upcycling, recycling, technical assistance, disposal restrictions, and recycling market policies.
- Requires anaerobic digestion projects to submit end-product recycling plans, cap animal waste, and use source-separated organics.
- Authorizes 650 million dollars per year from fiscal years 2026 through 2035.
Evidence Chain:
This summary is generated from the full bill text using AI analysis. Expand "Detailed Analysis" below for identified beneficiaries/burden bearers with clause-level evidence links.
At a Glance
What This Bill Does
Creates EPA food waste reduction grants to cut food waste 50 percent by 2035 and fund prevention, rescue, upcycling, recycling, data, reporting, and disposal-disincentive policies.
Key Policy Areas
Environment, Food & Beverage, State & Local Government, Tribal Nations
Primary Purpose
Creates EPA food waste reduction grants to cut food waste 50 percent by 2035 and fund prevention, rescue, upcycling, recycling, data, reporting, and disposal-disincentive policies.
Policy Domains
Substantive provisions
Identified Gains
- state governments
- local governments
- Tribal governments
- nonprofit organizations
- low-income communities
- food rescue programs
Identified Costs
- Environmental Protection Agency staff
- grantees
- landfill operators
- incinerator operators
- federal taxpayers
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
In CommitteeReferred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
Introduced in House
Ms. Brownley (for herself, Ms. Pingree, Mr. Casten, and Ms. …
Stakeholder Effects
cui bono?How this legislation distributes effects. Mention counts reflect frequency, not effect magnitude.
local governments receiving food waste grants, state governments receiving food waste grants
nonprofit organizations running food waste programs
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
- "Administrator"
- → Environmental Protection Agency Administrator
Key Definitions
Terms defined in this bill
A method or activity that reduces food waste disposed of in landfills or incinerated, including prevention, rescue, upcycling, and recycling.
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
Learn more about our methodology