Edible Food Recovery Program

In the edible food recovery program we are responsible for meeting certain requirements of the SB 1383 regulations - Short-Lived Climate Pollutants (SLCP).  

We conduct routine inspections, check records and provide education and outreach for commercial edible food generators, recovery organizations, recovery services and solid waste operations. The purpose of the program is to reduce food waste and address food insecurity. Surplus food that is still safe for people to eat will instead go to food banks, soup kitchens, and other food recovery organizations and services to help feed Californians in need.

Californians send 11.2 billion pounds of food to landfills each year, some of which was still fresh enough to have been recovered to feed people in need. While billions of meals go to waste, millions of Californians don’t have enough to eat. SB 1383 requires that by 2025 California will recover 20 percent of the edible food that would otherwise be sent to landfills, to feed people in need. This will help save landfill space and lower methane emissions, a climate super pollutant, emitted by organic waste in landfills.