The Fight Against Food Waste Comes to Oregon

Oregonians waste too much food

We waste too much food in Oregon: in fact, 968 thousand tons of food went uneaten in 2022 alone. That would fill enough garbage trucks to line up along I-5 from the Northern to the Southern borders of Oregon almost three times. About one third of that uneaten food ends up in landfills where it produces methane, a greenhouse gas that contributes to climate change. The rest is either never harvested or disposed of in other ways like in incinerators or sewers – only about 20% is composted.  The emissions from wasted food in Oregon each year exceeds the annual emissions of 9 gas-fired power plants. Beyond that, it is simply a waste of resources and money. Given the amount of time, resources and labor it takes to produce our food, the last thing we should do is toss it in the trash where it creates climate pollution.

There are two main categories of food waste

Some food waste occurs in our own homes (residential), and some happens in businesses like big restaurants (commercial). To address food waste , we need to tackle the problem in households as well as businesses across the state. 

• Residential: Most of us are familiar with the labels that come on our food: “best by”, “use by”, “sell by”, “freshest by”. Have you ever wondered what those really mean? Most of the time, those labels do not actually communicate food safety. Infant formula is the only product with a federally regulated date label. The truth is that date labels are usually just the manufacturer’s best guess  at how long a product will remain at peak freshness. Oftentimes, products can remain safe to eat for days, or even weeks, past a “sell by’ date. Understandably, these labels cause confusion about food safety, which leads to people throwing out food that could still be consumed. In fact, more than 70% of all food thrown away by Oregon households could have been eaten. 
• Commercial: While there is a lot we can do to reduce waste at home, much of our food waste happens in industrial kitchens, food distribution centers, wholesale operations, and more. More than half of all food waste in Oregon comes from commercial farming, manufacturing, retail, and foodservice sectors. The majority of this wasted food ends up in landfills and incinerators. Not only is this a waste of energy and resources, but landfilled food produces greenhouse gasses like carbon dioxide and methane, contributing to climate change. 

Oregon can reduce food waste

We should create a sustainable loop where edible food is eaten and scraps are composted or repurposed. We have an opportunity to address both residential and commercial food waste with an upcoming bill in the state legislature. 

The bill would do two things

First, it would standardize food labeling practices in Oregon to reduce consumer confusion, and in turn reduce the amount of edible food we toss. 

Second, it would require large producers of food to responsibly dispose of scraps and excess food using alternative methods like composting and donation. 

Reducing wasted food would have ripple effects for our environment and community

The average household could save up to $1500 every year by reducing food waste and we could provide millions of meals to people. Not to mention, we could enrich our soil with high quality compost and significantly cut down on greenhouse gas emissions.  Removing food waste from landfills could potentially reduce methane emissions by 33%.  

And it works

Similar programs in other states have led to increased donations of edible food. After the implementation of their policy, Vermont saw a 60% increase in food donations; and, Massachusetts recorded a 25,000 ton increase in food donations in the year following the implementation of a similar program. 

With broad support from the public, local businesses, and other organizations, we can convince legislators to pass legislation to reduce food waste statewide and put Oregon on a path towards a sustainable food system.

OSPIRG has a strong track record of helping to reduce waste in Oregon. We helped pass the bottle bill, a ban on polystyrene foam foodware and packing peanuts, and the strongest Right to Repair law in the country. Now, it’s time to take action to reduce food waste.

Tell your state legislator: Tackle food waste in 2025

With your help, we can convince our decision makers to end food waste. Tell your state legislators to reduce food waste in Oregon. We have an opportunity to redirect valuable resources, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and feed millions of people.