The US EPA’s new Food Waste Scale is a long-awaited recognition of the importance of composting inedible food scrap and will bring much needed clarity to this issue. The USCC has been urging EPA to make this change for the past decade. The new (Food Waste Scale) revisits the food waste hierarchy and changes the framework to prioritize actions that prevent and divert wasted food from disposal. Tiers of the scale highlight different pathways for preventing or managing wasted food in order from most preferred to least preferred. The USCC believes composting is the superior and most economical option for inedible food scraps.
“We are glad to see the EPA, USDA, and the FDA seeking to cut food loss and waste in half by the end of the decade. We also applaud the EPA for recognizing composting – the controlled aerobic decomposition of organic materials by microorganisms as a vital tool in this ambitious plan,”
Executive Director of the USCC Frank Franciosi said. “Composting is a vital component in this up-hill battle, and we encourage all individuals to continue to support composting as the organics recycling method of choice. Compost the product has the unmatched capacity to enable climate resilient landscapes through actively improving soils and managing for environmental stressors such as flooding and drought. It actively replenishes the soil with an amendment that sequesters carbon, increases water retention, increases soil health, and reduces soil erosion.”