The United States is one of the leading contributors to global food waste, generating more food waste than all but two countries. This alarming statistic has prompted the federal government to set an ambitious goal: to cut food waste in half by 2030, relative to 2016 levels. The target is to bring per capita food waste down to 164 pounds annually. However, despite these efforts, recent research indicates that the nation is not on track to meet this goal. A study published in Nature Food, led by the University of California, Davis, paints a troubling picture of the effectiveness of current state policies in tackling food waste. Since 2016, food waste per person has actually increased, rather than decreased, underscoring the need for a more robust approach to address this issue.
“We’re just five years away from 2030, so it’s quite alarming how little progress we have made,” said Sarah Kakadellis, the first author of the study and a postdoctoral researcher at UC Davis’ Department of Food Science and Technology. Kakadellis emphasizes the urgent need for comprehensive policies that focus not just on managing food waste after it has been created, but also on preventing waste and redirecting it for productive uses, such as feeding those in need. The study highlights a significant gap between the federal goals and the policies being enacted at the state level.
State-level food waste policies play a key role in determining how food waste is handled and diverted from landfills. However, the research reveals a concerning trend: many state policies prioritize food waste recycling methods like composting and anaerobic digestion, which are important but insufficient strategies on their own. While these methods keep food out of landfills and help reduce some of the environmental impact, they do not address the core issue of food waste at its source. A growing body of experts, including Kakadellis, argue that more emphasis should be placed on preventing food waste before it occurs and rescuing edible food to feed people, rather than simply recycling it.
The federal government and other organizations have increasingly recognized the need to not only reduce the amount of food wasted but to redirect as much surplus food as possible to people who are food insecure. Kakadellis points out that the U.S. has a significant problem with food insecurity, with millions of people experiencing hunger, yet more than a third of the food produced in the country goes to waste. She calls for a shift in focus toward food redistribution, such as donating surplus food to food banks, and suggests repurposing food for animal feed where applicable. This would better align with the nation’s ethical and environmental responsibilities.
In fact, there are considerable environmental concerns associated with simply recycling or composting food waste. While diverting food from landfills helps mitigate some of the negative environmental impacts, food production itself is highly resource-intensive, requiring significant amounts of water, energy, and fertilizer. As a result, wasting food ultimately means wasting these precious resources, exacerbating the environmental footprint of food systems. Furthermore, food waste is a major contributor to global greenhouse gas emissions, accounting for approximately 8–10% of total emissions worldwide. This makes the reduction of food waste an important environmental objective.
Edward Spang, the principal investigator of the study and an associate professor in the UC Davis Department of Food Science and Technology, explains the broader environmental consequences of food waste. “When we waste food, we’re wasting all the resources it takes to grow that food, including energy, water, and fertilizer,” he notes. “Meanwhile, wasted food represents 8–10% of global greenhouse gas emissions.” This connection underscores the urgency of addressing food waste not only as a social issue but also as a key environmental challenge.
The research team conducted a thorough evaluation of state policies designed to reduce food waste, looking at four primary policy areas: prevention, rescue, repurposing, and recycling. Prevention involves measures like date labeling to ensure food is used before it expires, while rescue strategies include providing liability protections and tax incentives for food donations. Repurposing includes efforts to redirect food waste to animal feed, while recycling focuses on diverting food waste from landfills through composting or other waste management methods.
The study found that recycling policies had the largest potential to divert food waste, but even these efforts were insufficient to meet the federal target. Despite the widespread adoption of recycling policies in many states, only a few states—California, Vermont, and Arizona—were projected to meet the 2030 goal of reducing food waste to 164 pounds per person. Under the revised definition of food waste adopted by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which excludes recycling, states’ diversion potential ranged from as little as 11 pounds to as much as 30 pounds per person. Washington, for example, could divert about a third of its current food waste, while California could reduce food waste by 26%.
Despite these efforts, the study predicts that Americans will still generate an average of 328 pounds of food waste per person annually by 2030—double the federal target. Interestingly, Arkansas, despite its low diversion potential, was the state that came closest to meeting the national goal. The state’s lower food waste generation meant it had less room to reduce further, making it difficult to achieve additional reductions.
Another key factor contributing to the increasing food waste per capita is the lasting impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Kakadellis suggests that the early months of the pandemic saw a temporary reduction in food waste, as people were cooking more at home and events like catered gatherings were limited. However, as restrictions eased and people returned to pre-pandemic habits, food waste levels began to rise once again. This shift back to old patterns of behavior has complicated efforts to reduce waste in the long term.
Kakadellis stresses that while recycling food waste is an important part of the solution, it is not the only solution, nor should it be the primary focus. She argues that policies should be realigned to prioritize food waste prevention and rescue over recycling. “When state policies focus on recycling, it’s very easy to think we’re addressing the food waste problem,” she says. “Recycling food waste is important but not the only solution, nor should it be the first.”
The study’s findings highlight the need for a more holistic approach to food waste reduction, one that goes beyond merely recycling food and focuses on systemic changes that can prevent food waste before it happens. The authors suggest that policy reforms should encourage food waste prevention through better planning and consumer education, support food rescue initiatives, and incentivize practices like repurposing food for animal feed. Only by tackling the issue from multiple angles can the U.S. hope to meet its 2030 food waste reduction target.
Other contributors to the study include Selina Mao and Asch Harwood from ReFED, an organization that works to reduce food waste in the U.S. Their collaboration underscores the importance of cross-disciplinary approaches to tackling complex problems like food waste.
Ultimately, addressing food waste is not just an environmental or logistical challenge—it’s a moral imperative. As Kakadellis points out, there is a significant portion of the American population that suffers from food insecurity, while at the same time, the nation wastes an astonishing amount of food. If the U.S. is to meet its food waste reduction goals and make a meaningful impact on both the environment and society, it will need to enact more comprehensive and effective policies that prioritize prevention, rescue, and responsible consumption. Time is running out, and the actions taken in the coming years will determine whether the country can reduce food waste and create a more sustainable, equitable food system for future generations.
Reference: State-level policies alone are insufficient to meet the federal food waste reduction goal in the United States, Nature Food (2025). DOI: 10.1038/s43016-024-01092-w
