On September 20, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced a $25 million investment to strengthen efforts in reducing food loss and waste. The funding, provided by the American Rescue Plan Act, was a collaboration between the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) and the Office of the Chief Economist of the USDA.
According to Tom Vilsack, the Secretary of Agriculture, the investment aims to address the significant issue of food loss and waste in the United States. Vilsack stated, "More than one-third of all food that is available in the US is lost or wasted. Opportunities for increased food security, economic expansion, and environmental prosperity are lost when food is thrown away."
In recent years, NIFA has been actively working to combat food loss and waste by investing in various projects. Since 2017, NIFA has allocated $123.5 million to 527 initiatives focused on reducing food loss and waste. The additional $25 million funding will contribute to the growth of several of NIFA's main programs.
One of the programs that will benefit from the investment is the Community Food Projects (CFP) Competitive Grants Program. This program aims to prevent food loss and waste while providing people with nutritious food. It also creates connections between food suppliers, producers, and recovery organizations. The CFP grants empower local communities to have a say in decisions related to the food system and support neighborhood food markets, ultimately improving food and nutrition security and boosting local businesses. In the fiscal year 2023 Request for Applications competition, 12 CFP Food Loss and Waste projects received $4.3 million from NIFA to implement measures that decrease food waste in the neighborhood food system.
Furthermore, the funding will support NIFA's Food and Agriculture Service Learning Program (FASLP) grants, which focus on reducing food loss and waste on school grounds. Through these grants, students will have the opportunity to learn about reducing food waste, improving the school environment, and utilizing cafeterias and other areas of the school as classrooms. The FASLP initiatives aim to promote child nutrition and raise awareness of agriculture. In the fiscal year 2023 Request for Application competition, NIFA has selected three recipients to receive over $500,000 in funds to support projects in Connecticut and Alabama.
This investment from the USDA reflects the government's commitment to tackling the issue of food loss and waste. By supporting innovative projects and initiatives, the USDA aims to reduce food waste, improve food security, and create a more sustainable and efficient food system.
