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04/03/2024

Connecticut Celebrates Food Waste Prevention Week April 1-7

DEEP Shares Preliminary Results of Sustainable Materials Management Grant Pilot Programs, Which Have Demonstrated Success in Diverting Food Waste

(HARTFORD) — With Governor Ned Lamont declaring April 1-7, 2024, as Connecticut Food Waste Prevention Week, the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) announced today that all this week, the agency will be highlighting the need to reduce food waste and recover more for human consumption as a social, environmental, and economic issue.

In Connecticut, we are throwing away 520,000 tons of food waste that has the potential to be eaten every year, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. At the same time, one in ten individuals in Connecticut experience hunger or are food insecure.

In July 2022, MIRA, a waste-to-energy facility in Hartford, closed its doors. As a result, Connecticut is now shipping about 40% (est. 860,000 tons) of its Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) to out-of-state landfills annually. To reduce this reliance on shipping waste out of state, DEEP is working with municipalities to implement programs that reduce, reuse and recycle more materials – including food.

“Connecticut Food Waste Prevention Week is a great opportunity to inform residents about the need to reduce food waste,” said DEEP Commissioner Katie Dykes. “We need to reduce waste overall, and reducing food waste by learning how to better manage food in our homes and recover more surplus food from grocers and large institutions is a win-win.”

Sustainable Materials Management Grant Program

Food waste prevention goes hand-in-hand with the food waste diversion efforts that DEEP has been supporting in municipalities across the state. Through its Sustainable Materials Management Grant program, DEEP has provided funding to support food scrap diversion pilot programs in 15 municipalities. These voluntary programs have proven the potential to meaningfully reduce waste, resulting in over one million pounds of food scraps diverted from the trash, and a 14% reduction in waste disposed of on average.

“The SMM pilots have been a success in that they have demonstrated the ability to separate food waste, increase waste diversion, and confirmed the potential to save Connecticut municipalities millions of dollars if widely adopted,” Commissioner Dykes said.

As part of Food Waste Prevention Week, DEEP is sharing preliminary results of the municipal SMM pilot programs to date through a new webinar.

CT Food Waste Prevention Week

DEEP is developing a Food Waste Prevention and Food Recovery Roadmap to better understand the challenges and opportunities for businesses and institutions to reduce food loss and donate surplus food, as well as identify ways to support entities that would collect and receive excess food. Current data estimates that about 22.3% of our MSW is food waste, and of that 70% was edible before it was disposed and could have fed people.

Current data also shows that we’re recovering only 1-2% of the excess or surplus food in Connecticut, which represents a great opportunity to recover more food for consumption while disposing of less.

The Governor’s Food Waste Prevention Week proclamation notes the special role that schools play in educating the next generation to reduce, recover, and recycle food. The proclamation also encourages each Connecticut resident to do all we can to keep food waste out of the trash.

Throughout Food Waste Prevention Week (and beyond), DEEP staff will be participating in and spotlighting events that promote various food waste prevention strategies. Simple strategies can help reduce food waste at home, including proper storage of food just purchased as well as leftovers. Creating a shopping list based on planned meals can reduce the amount of food going to waste in your refrigerator too!

The events will focus on the benefits of cooking with leftovers, proper food storage techniques, and a discussion on how food recovery is a pathway towards social justice. In addition, some Connecticut schools are also hosting poster contests around preventing food loss. Here’s a list of some of the upcoming events:

  • April 5, 2024 – 4:30 - 6:00 p.m. – Recovered Food as a Pathway to Social Justice. Hosted by Southern Connecticut State University in partnership with Haven’s Harvest and DEEP; includes a panel and a cooking demonstration using recovered foods. More information here.
  • April 6, 2024 – 11:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. – ReThink Waste Fair. Hosted by Waste Free Greenwich, both Food Rescue US and CT DEEP will be present. Their activities will include a cooking demonstration using leftovers, food storage techniques and a food waste trivia contest! More information here.
  • April 9, 2024 – 6:30 - 7:30 p.m. – Food Waste Solutions presentation hosted by Middletown Recycling, will provide information about the waste crisis and solutions individuals, businesses and municipalities can implement in response. More information here.
  • April 15, 2024 – 7:00 - 8:00 p.m. – Food Matters: Impacts & Solutions in Greenwich. Hosted by Waste Free Greenwich. More information here.
  • April 15, 2024 – 6:00 - 7:30 p.m. – Love Food Hate Waste presentation hosted by Sustainable Trumbull, will share practical ways to tackle food waste and embrace composting in your daily life. More information here.
  • April 24, 2024 – 7:00 p.m. – Food Waste Solutions presentation hosted by Hamden Earth Day Committee, will provide information about the waste crisis and solutions individuals, businesses and municipalities can implement in response. More information here.

Connecticut residents are encouraged to visit DEEP’s websites and social media pages for more information on food waste prevention, as well as fun facts, such as:

Onions and potatoes both like to be stored in a cool, dry and dark place, but not together. If they’re stored together, onions will sprout and rot more quickly than if away from potatoes.

More information:

Twitter: @CTDEEPNews
Facebook: DEEP on Facebook

Contact

DEEP Communications  
DEEP.communications@ct.gov
860-424-3110