SILVER SPRING, MD. — On May 30, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), US Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) renewed their Federal Interagency Collaboration to Reduce Food Loss and Waste (FIFLAW) and welcomed a new member to the partnership, the US Agency for International Development (USAID).

Under the FIFLAW, the agencies committed to working together with external partners to leverage the private and the non-governmental sectors to drive national and global change to reduce food loss and waste. The partnership’s activities include the production of educational and guidance materials (e.g., tool development), outreach (e.g., federal panels at events), research, community investments, voluntary programs, technical assistance, policy discussion and public-private partnerships. With the addition of USAID, the federal government can broaden its reach to a wider range of international stakeholders while better leveraging government resources.

Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan, FDA Commissioner Robert M. Califf, MD, and USAID Administrator Samantha Power signed a formal agreement renewing and enhancing the collaborative effort.

“The FDA is committed to achieving the goal of a 50% reduction of food loss and waste by 2030 through a whole-of-government approach in collaboration with the USDA, EPA and USAID,” Califf said. “We also recognize the role that empowered US consumers can play in helping to reach the national food waste reduction goal. We encourage consumers and retailers to use the FDA’s food loss and waste reduction resources including the 2022 Food Code, Tips to Reduce Food Waste and the Food Loss and Waste Social Media Toolkit to bolster their efforts.”

Formed in October 2018, the Federal Interagency Collaboration to Reduce Food Loss and Waste was renewed in December 2020 and has published the draft National Strategy to Reduce Food Loss and Waste and Recycle Organics. The agencies are working together to produce a final strategy toward meeting the national goal of reducing food loss and waste by 50% by 2030.

“Globally, 30-40% of food produced is either lost or wasted throughout the farm-to-consumer supply chain, such as in fields due to spoilage and pest damage, while being stored, in transit and when it goes unused by consumers,” according to the agencies. “The US sends nearly 80 billion lbs of food to municipal solid waste landfills annually, and when food is tossed aside, so are opportunities for improved food security, economic growth and environmental prosperity.”