Recently, two bills have been introduced into the U.S. House of Representatives that would significantly reduce the amount of food that the United States wastes each year (HR 4382 and HR 4184).
Shockingly, 40% of all food produced in the United States is wasted. That's the equivalent of 133 billion pounds of food wasted every year. Uneaten food in homes, restaurants, and retailers costs $161 billion per year--or $1,500 per year for a family of four.
Wasting food is also bad for the environment. Environmental experts have calculated that 20% of municipal landfills consist of food waste.
It's been estimated that simply saving and using 15% of the food currently wasted could cut the number of food insecure Americans by 50%. Food waste can also be used to generate electricity.
We owe it to our children, our families, our friends, the environment and, importantly our neighbors who are going hungry, to reduce wasting food. Please sign this petition now to urge Congress to take action to reduce food waste.
Please sign this petition urging Members of Congress to support HR 4184--The Food Recovery Act--which implements comprehensive steps to reduce food waste on the farm, in stores, institutions, and homes, and to support The Food Date Labeling Act which aims to make food date labels more consistent and less confusing. This can then lead to reducing the amount of food needlessly thrown out.
These are two bills EVERY Member of Congress, no matter their political leanings, can--and should--get behind.
Dear Decision Maker:
As a constituent and someone who cares about reducing the number of Americans who go to bed hungry each night, I strongly urge you to support HR 4382 and HR 4184 -- legislation to reduce food waste in the US.
It's been estimated that simply saving and using 15% of the food currently wasted could cut the number of food insecure Americans by 50%. Yet 40% of all food produced in the United States is still wasted. That's the equivalent of 133 billion pounds of food wasted every year. Uneaten food in homes, restaurants, and retailers costs $161 billion per year--or $1,500 per year for a family of four.
[Your comments here]
There is simply no reason to continue wasting food while so many go hungry. I hope you will do everything you can to ensure passage of HR 4382 and HR 4184.
Sincerely,
[Your name]
