An Act Establishing a Pilot Program for Donations of Excess Edible Food

Large commercial grocery chains discard massive volumes of safe, edible food into landfills, releasing extensive greenhouse gases while thousands of families face food insecurity. Despite some voluntary donations, grocery chains lack a legally binding requirement to prioritize human food recovery over disposal.

This bill mandates that grocery chains over 10,000 square feet with 10+ locations separate and donate safe, excess edible food to non-profit distributors. It prohibits intentionally spoiling human-recoverable food, enforcing compliance through mandatory logs and civil penalties up to $30,000. Municipalities must estimate local excess food, assess non-profit distributor capacity, and fund recovery infrastructure where gaps exist.

Read the full proposal below

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