II 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1680 

To decrease the incidence of food waste, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JULY 31, 2017 

Mr. BLUMENTHAL (for himself, Mr. SCHATZ, Mr. WYDEN, Mr. MERKLEY, and 

Mr. BOOKER) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry 

A BILL 

To decrease the incidence of food waste, and for other 

purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Food Recovery Act of 2017’’. 

6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

7 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Definition of Secretary. 

TITLE I—FARMS 

Sec. 101. Use of Rural Energy for America Program to reduce food and crop 

waste. 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
2 

•S 1680 IS

Sec. 102. Farm storage facility loan program. 

Sec. 103. Composting as conservation practice. 

Sec. 104. Study and report on methods to decrease incidence of food waste. 

TITLE II—RETAIL AND RESTAURANTS 

Sec. 201. Good Samaritan food donation. 

Sec. 202. Report on food donation by retail food stores. 

Sec. 203. Use of Commodity Credit Corporation funds to cover Emergency 

Food Assistance Program storage and distribution costs. 

TITLE III—SCHOOLS AND OTHER INSTITUTIONS 

Sec. 301. Establishment of Food Recovery Liaison. 

Sec. 302. Amendments to Federal Food Donation Act to require food donations 

by executive agencies and Congress. 

Sec. 303. Food and agriculture service learning program. 

Sec. 304. Modification of National School Lunch Program procurement requirements to encourage purchase of lower-price, nonstandard-size 

or -shape produce. 

Sec. 305. Farm to school grant program to improve access to local foods in 

schools and reduce food waste. 

TITLE IV—FOOD DATE LABELING 

Sec. 401. Definitions. 

Sec. 402. Quality dates and safety dates. 

Sec. 403. Misbranding violation for quality dates and safety dates in food labeling. 

Sec. 404. Regulations and guidance. 

Sec. 405. Delayed applicability. 

Sec. 406. Report to Congress. 

TITLE V—CONSUMERS AND LOCAL INFRASTRUCTURE 

Sec. 501. Support for national media campaigns to decrease incidence of food 

waste. 

Sec. 502. Increase in resources for community facilities loans directed at 

composting and anaerobic digestion food waste-to-energy operations. 

Sec. 503. Expansion of rural utilities service water and waste disposal program 

to provide loans and grants for rural communities to adapt 

waste disposal facilities to incorporate anaerobic digestion food 

waste-to-energy operations. 

Sec. 504. Grants for food waste management infrastructure. 

Sec. 505. Government Accountability Office audit. 

1 SEC. 2. DEFINITION OF SECRETARY. 

2 In this Act, the term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Sec3 retary of Agriculture. 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
3 

•S 1680 IS

1 TITLE I—FARMS 

2 SEC. 101. USE OF RURAL ENERGY FOR AMERICA PROGRAM 

3 TO REDUCE FOOD AND CROP WASTE. 

4 (a) REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO INSTALLATION OF

5 ANAEROBIC DIGESTERS.—Section 9007(c) of the Farm 

6 Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 

7 8107(c)) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

8 ‘‘(5) REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO INSTALLA9 TION OF ANAEROBIC DIGESTERS.—In the case of a 

10 loan guarantee or grant provided under this sub11 section to an agricultural producer or rural small 

12 business to support the installation of an anaerobic 

13 digester that will use food waste in addition to ma14 nure to produce renewable energy, the Secretary 

15 shall obtain from the recipient of the loan guarantee 

16 or grant— 

17 ‘‘(A) a written commitment that the recipi18 ent has read and agrees to comply with the 

19 Food Recovery Hierarchy of the Environmental 

20 Protection Agency, particularly as applied to 

21 apparently wholesome food (as defined in sec22 tion 22(b) of the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 

23 (42 U.S.C. 1791(b))) that may be provided to, 

24 or received by, the recipient; and 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
4 

•S 1680 IS

1 ‘‘(B) a written end-product recycling plan 

2 that provides for the beneficial use of the mate3 rial resulting from the anaerobic digester, in a 

4 manner that meets all applicable Federal, 

5 State, and local laws safeguarding human 

6 health and the environment.’’. 

7 (b) FUNDING.—Section 9007(g)(1) of the Farm Se8 curity and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 

9 8107(g)(1)) is amended— 

10 (1) in subparagraph (D), by striking ‘‘and’’ at 

11 the end; 

12 (2) in subparagraph (E), by striking ‘‘fiscal 

13 year 2014 and each fiscal year thereafter.’’ and in14 serting ‘‘each of fiscal years 2014 through 2018; 

15 and’’; and 

16 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

17 ‘‘(F) $70,000,000 for fiscal year 2019 and 

18 each fiscal year thereafter, of which not less 

19 than $20,000,000 shall be reserved for use for 

20 loan guarantees and grants described in sub21 section (c)(5).’’. 

22 SEC. 102. FARM STORAGE FACILITY LOAN PROGRAM. 

23 Section 1614(a) of the Food, Conservation, and En24 ergy Act of 2008 (7 U.S.C. 8789(a)) is amended by strik25 ing ‘‘to construct or upgrade storage and handling faciliVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:51 Aug 10, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1680.IS S1680

sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
5 

•S 1680 IS

1 ties’’ and inserting ‘‘to acquire, construct, or upgrade stor2 age, handling, and transportation facilities, which may in3 clude refrigerated vehicles to improve storage and mar4 keting and other means to reduce food waste,’’. 

5 SEC. 103. COMPOSTING AS CONSERVATION PRACTICE. 

6 (a) DEFINITIONS.—Section 1201(a) of the Food Se7 curity Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3801(a)) is amended— 

8 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (3) through 

9 (27) as paragraphs (4) through (28), respectively; 

10 and 

11 (2) by inserting after paragraph (2) the fol12 lowing: 

13 ‘‘(3) COMPOSTING PRACTICE.—The term 

14 ‘composting practice’ means— 

15 ‘‘(A) an activity (including an activity that 

16 does not require the use of a composting facil17 ity) to produce compost from organic waste 

18 that is— 

19 ‘‘(i) generated on a farm; or 

20 ‘‘(ii) brought to a farm from the near21 by community; and 

22 ‘‘(B) the use of compost on a farm to im23 prove water retention and soil health, subject to 

24 the condition that such a use shall be in compliVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:51 Aug 10, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1680.IS S1680

sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
6 

•S 1680 IS

1 ance with applicable Federal, State, and local 

2 laws.’’. 

3 (b) CONSERVATION STEWARDSHIP PROGRAM.—Sec4 tion 1238D(2)(B)(i) of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 

5 U.S.C. 3838d(2)(B)(i)) is amended by inserting ‘‘and 

6 composting practices’’ after ‘‘agriculture drainage man7 agement systems’’. 

8 (c) ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY INCENTIVES PRO9 GRAM.—Section 1240A(4)(A)(ii) of the Food Security Act 

10 of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3839aa–1(4)(A)(ii)) is amended by in11 serting ‘‘, including composting practices’’ before the semi12 colon at the end. 

13 (d) DELIVERY OF TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—Section 

14 1242(h) of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 

15 3842(h)) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

16 ‘‘(4) DEVELOPMENT OF COMPOSTING PRACTICE

17 STANDARD.—In addition to conducting a review of 

18 any composting facilities practice standard under 

19 this subsection, the Secretary shall develop and im20 plement a composting practice standard.’’. 

21 SEC. 104. STUDY AND REPORT ON METHODS TO DECREASE 

22 INCIDENCE OF FOOD WASTE. 

23 (a) DEFINITION OF AGRICULTURAL PRODUCT.—In 

24 this section, the term ‘‘agricultural product’’ has the 

25 meaning given the term ‘‘agricultural products’’ in section 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
7 

•S 1680 IS

1 207 of the Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 (7 U.S.C. 

2 1626). 

3 (b) STUDY.—The Secretary shall conduct a study re4 garding— 

5 (1) new technologies to increase the period dur6 ing which an agricultural product may be stored be7 fore the agricultural product is considered adulter8 ated under State or Federal law; and 

9 (2) a method to measure the quantity of agri10 cultural product that is not harvested or sent to 

11 market each year by the farms that produce the ag12 ricultural product. 

13 (c) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

14 of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to 

15 Congress a report that includes— 

16 (1) the results of the study conducted under 

17 subsection (b); and 

18 (2) the recommendations of the Secretary with 

19 respect to methods of decreasing the incidence of 

20 food waste. 

21 TITLE II—RETAIL AND 

22 RESTAURANTS 

23 SEC. 201. GOOD SAMARITAN FOOD DONATION. 

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Bill Emerson Good Samari25 tan Food Donation Act (42 U.S.C. 1791) is amended— 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
8 

•S 1680 IS

1 (1) in subsection (b)— 

2 (A) in paragraph (1)— 

3 (i) by striking ‘‘quality and labeling’’ 

4 and inserting ‘‘safety and safety-related la5 beling’’; and 

6 (ii) by inserting ‘‘passage of a date on 

7 a date label,’’ after ‘‘surplus,’’; 

8 (B) in paragraph (2)— 

9 (i) by striking ‘‘quality and labeling’’ 

10 and inserting ‘‘safety and safety-related la11 beling’’; and 

12 (ii) by inserting ‘‘passage of a date on 

13 a date label,’’ after ‘‘surplus,’’; 

14 (C) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘not re15 quired to give anything of monetary value’’ and 

16 inserting ‘‘not required to give anything of 

17 monetary value or charged a good Samaritan 

18 reduced price’’; 

19 (D) by redesignating paragraphs (6), (7), 

20 (8), (9), and (10) as paragraphs (7), (8), (9), 

21 (10), and (11), respectively; and 

22 (E) by inserting after paragraph (5) the 

23 following: 

24 ‘‘(6) GOOD SAMARITAN REDUCED PRICE.—The 

25 term ‘good Samaritan reduced price’ means the 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
9 

•S 1680 IS

1 price of an apparently wholesome food or an appar2 ently fit grocery product that is an amount not 

3 greater than the cost of handling, administering, and 

4 distributing the apparently wholesome food or ap5 parently fit grocery product.’’; and 

6 (2) in subsection (c)— 

7 (A) in paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘or sells 

8 at a good Samaritan reduced price’’ after ‘‘do9 nates in good faith’’; 

10 (B) in paragraph (2), by inserting ‘‘or 

11 from a sale at a good Samaritan reduced price’’ 

12 after ‘‘donation in good faith’’; 

13 (C) by redesignating paragraph (3) as 

14 paragraph (4); 

15 (D) by inserting after paragraph (2) the 

16 following: 

17 ‘‘(3) DIRECT DONATIONS TO NEEDY INDIVID18 UALS.— 

19 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A qualified direct 

20 donor described in subparagraph (B) shall not 

21 be subject to civil or criminal liability arising 

22 from the nature, age, packaging, or condition of 

23 apparently wholesome food or an apparently fit 

24 grocery product that the qualified direct donor 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
10 

•S 1680 IS

1 donates in good faith or sells at a good Samari2 tan reduced price to a needy individual. 

3 ‘‘(B) QUALIFIED DIRECT DONOR DE4 SCRIBED.—A qualified direct donor referred to 

5 in subparagraph (A) is a retail grocer, whole6 saler, agricultural producer, restaurant, caterer, 

7 school food authority, or institution of higher 

8 education (as defined in section 102 of the 

9 Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

10 1002)).’’; and 

11 (E) in paragraph (4) (as redesignated by 

12 subparagraph (C)), by striking ‘‘Paragraphs (1) 

13 and (2)’’ and inserting ‘‘Paragraphs (1), (2), 

14 and (3)’’. 

15 (b) REGULATIONS; GUIDANCE.—Not later than 180 

16 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary 

17 shall— 

18 (1) in consultation with the Secretary of Health 

19 and Human Services, issue regulations with respect 

20 to the safety and safety-related labeling standards of 

21 an apparently wholesome food and an apparently fit 

22 grocery product under the Bill Emerson Good Sa23 maritan Food Donation Act (42 U.S.C. 1791) (as 

24 amended by subsection (a)); 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
11 

•S 1680 IS

1 (2) promote awareness of food donation under 

2 that Act (as amended by subsection (a)); and 

3 (3) issue guidance with respect to the amend4 ments made by subsection (a). 

5 SEC. 202. REPORT ON FOOD DONATION BY RETAIL FOOD 

6 STORES. 

7 Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment 

8 of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a re9 port describing the recommendations of the Secretary with 

10 respect to methods of increasing food donation by retail 

11 food stores, as defined by the Secretary. 

12 SEC. 203. USE OF COMMODITY CREDIT CORPORATION 

13 FUNDS TO COVER EMERGENCY FOOD ASSIST14 ANCE PROGRAM STORAGE AND DISTRIBU15 TION COSTS. 

16 Section 204 of the Emergency Food Assistance Act 

17 of 1983 (7 U.S.C. 7508) is amended— 

18 (1) by striking the section designation and 

19 heading and all that follows through ‘‘available to 

20 the States’’ in the first sentence of subsection (a)(1) 

21 and inserting the following: 

22 ‘‘SEC. 204. FUNDS FOR STATE STORAGE AND DISTRIBUTION 

23 COSTS. 

24 ‘‘(a) AUTHORIZATION.— 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
12 

•S 1680 IS

1 ‘‘(1) PROCESSING, STORAGE, TRANSPORT, AND

2 DISTRIBUTION.— 

3 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Using funds of the 

4 Commodity Credit Corporation, the Secretary 

5 shall make available to the States $100,000,000 

6 for fiscal year 2018 and each fiscal year there7 after’’; 

8 (2) in subsection (a)(1)— 

9 (A) in the second sentence, by striking 

10 ‘‘Funds appropriated’’ and inserting the fol11 lowing: 

12 ‘‘(B) METHOD OF ALLOCATION.—Funds 

13 made available’’; and 

14 (B) in the third sentence, by striking ‘‘If 

15 a State’’ and inserting the following: 

16 ‘‘(C) UNUSED FUNDS.—If a State’’; and 

17 (3) in subsection (b)— 

18 (A) by striking ‘‘(b) The value’’ and insert19 ing the following: 

20 ‘‘(b) TREATMENT.—The value’’; and 

21 (B) by striking ‘‘appropriations made or 

22 authorized under this section’’ and inserting 

23 ‘‘amounts made available under subsection 

24 (a)(1)’’. 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
13 

•S 1680 IS

1 TITLE III—SCHOOLS AND OTHER 

2 INSTITUTIONS 

3 SEC. 301. ESTABLISHMENT OF FOOD RECOVERY LIAISON. 

4 Subtitle A of the Department of Agriculture Reorga5 nization Act of 1994 (7 U.S.C. 6901 et seq.) is amended 

6 by adding at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘SEC. 221. FOOD RECOVERY LIAISON. 

8 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall estab9 lish within the Office of the Secretary a Food Recovery 

10 Liaison to coordinate Federal programs to measure and 

11 reduce the incidence of food waste in accordance with this 

12 section. 

13 ‘‘(b) DUTIES.—The Food Recovery Liaison shall— 

14 ‘‘(1) coordinate food waste reduction efforts 

15 with other Federal agencies, including— 

16 ‘‘(A) the Environmental Protection Agen17 cy; and 

18 ‘‘(B) the Food and Drug Administration; 

19 ‘‘(2) support and promote Federal programs to 

20 measure and reduce the incidence of food waste; 

21 ‘‘(3) provide information to, and serve as a re22 source for, entities engaged in food recovery con23 cerning the availability of, and eligibility require24 ments for, participation in Federal programs; 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
14 

•S 1680 IS

1 ‘‘(4) raise awareness of food recovery issues in 

2 interactions with employees of the Department; and 

3 ‘‘(5) make recommendations with respect to re4 ducing the incidence of food waste.’’. 

5 SEC. 302. AMENDMENTS TO FEDERAL FOOD DONATION ACT 

6 TO REQUIRE FOOD DONATIONS BY EXECU7 TIVE AGENCIES AND CONGRESS. 

8 (a) PURPOSE.—Section 2 of the Federal Food Dona9 tion Act of 2008 (Public Law 110–247; 42 U.S.C. 1792 

10 note) is amended by striking ‘‘encourage’’ and inserting 

11 ‘‘require’’. 

12 (b) DEFINITIONS.—Section 3 of the Federal Food 

13 Donation Act of 2008 (Public Law 110–247; 42 U.S.C. 

14 1792 note) is amended— 

15 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (3) and (4) as 

16 paragraphs (4) and (5), respectively; and 

17 (2) by inserting after paragraph (2) the fol18 lowing: 

19 ‘‘(3) EXECUTIVE AGENCY.—The term ‘executive 

20 agency’ has the meaning given the term in section 

21 133 of title 41, United States Code.’’. 

22 (c) PROMOTING FEDERAL FOOD DONATION.—Sec23 tion 4 of the Federal Food Donation Act of 2008 (42 

24 U.S.C. 1792) is amended— 

25 (1) in subsection (a)— 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
15 

•S 1680 IS

1 (A) by redesignating paragraphs (1) and 

2 (2) as subparagraphs (A) and (B), respectively, 

3 and indenting the subparagraphs appropriately; 

4 (B) in the matter preceding subparagraph 

5 (A) (as so redesignated), by striking ‘‘Not later 

6 than’’ and all that follows through ‘‘$25,000’’ 

7 and inserting the following: 

8 ‘‘(1) REQUIREMENT.—Not later than 180 days 

9 after the date of enactment of the Food Recovery 

10 Act of 2017, the Federal Acquisition Regulation 

11 issued in accordance with section 1121 of title 41, 

12 United States Code, shall be revised to provide that, 

13 except as provided in paragraph (2), all contracts of 

14 more than $10,000’’; 

15 (C) in subparagraph (A) (as so redesig16 nated), by striking ‘‘encourages’’ and inserting 

17 ‘‘requires’’; and 

18 (D) by adding at the end the following: 

19 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION.—Paragraph (1) shall not 

20 apply to a contract with an executive agency that 

21 has issued a regulation in effect on the date of en22 actment of the Food Recovery Act of 2017 that pro23 hibits a donation described in paragraph (1)(A).’’; 

24 and 

25 (2) by adding at the end the following: 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
16 

•S 1680 IS

1 ‘‘(c) APPLICATION TO CONGRESS.— 

2 ‘‘(1) CONTRACTS.—This Act shall apply to the 

3 House of Representatives and to contracts entered 

4 into by the House of Representatives, and to the 

5 Senate and to contracts entered into by the Senate, 

6 in the same manner and to the same extent as this 

7 Act applies to an executive agency and to contracts 

8 entered into by an executive agency. 

9 ‘‘(2) ADMINISTRATION.—For purposes of car10 rying out paragraph (1)— 

11 ‘‘(A) the Chief Administrative Officer of 

12 the House of Representatives shall be consid13 ered to be the head of the House of Representa14 tives; and 

15 ‘‘(B) the Secretary of the Senate shall be 

16 considered to be the head of the Senate. 

17 ‘‘(d) DATA; REPORTS.— 

18 ‘‘(1) DATA.—The head of each executive agency 

19 shall collect data on the quantity of apparently 

20 wholesome food donated in accordance with this Act. 

21 ‘‘(2) REPORTS.—Not less frequently than once 

22 every 2 years, the head of each executive agency 

23 shall submit to Congress a report describing the 

24 data collected under paragraph (1).’’. 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
17 

•S 1680 IS

1 (d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—The 

2 Federal Food Donation Act of 2008 (42 U.S.C. 1792) is 

3 amended by adding at the end the following: 

4 ‘‘SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

5 ‘‘There is authorized to be appropriated to the Sec6 retary of Agriculture to carry out this Act $10,000,000 

7 for each fiscal year.’’. 

8 SEC. 303. FOOD AND AGRICULTURE SERVICE LEARNING 

9 PROGRAM. 

10 Section 413 of the Agricultural Research, Extension, 

11 and Education Reform Act of 1998 (7 U.S.C. 7633) is 

12 amended— 

13 (1) in subsection (b)(4), by inserting ‘‘to pro14 mote agricultural education, to raise awareness re15 garding the consequences of wasted food, and to en16 courage the implementation of food recovery initia17 tives to reduce the quantity of wasted food’’ before 

18 the semicolon; 

19 (2) in subsection (c)— 

20 (A) in paragraph (2)— 

21 (i) in subparagraph (C), by striking 

22 ‘‘and where food comes from; and’’ and in23 serting ‘‘, where food comes from, the con24 sequences of food waste, and food recovery 

25 initiatives;’’; 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
18 

•S 1680 IS

1 (ii) in subparagraph (D), by striking 

2 the period at the end and inserting ‘‘; 

3 and’’; and 

4 (iii) by adding at the end the fol5 lowing: 

6 ‘‘(E) have the capacity to carry out na7 tional or regional projects that include 2 or 

8 more States.’’; and 

9 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

10 ‘‘(3) RESERVATION.—The majority of the funds 

11 made available to carry out this subsection shall be 

12 reserved for projects that— 

13 ‘‘(A) are larger in scale as compared to 

14 other proposed projects; 

15 ‘‘(B) are national or regional in scope; and 

16 ‘‘(C) include 2 or more States.’’; and 

17 (3) in subsection (e)(1), by striking 

18 ‘‘$25,000,000, to remain available until expended’’ 

19 and inserting ‘‘$5,000,000 for each of fiscal years 

20 2018 through 2022’’. 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
19 

•S 1680 IS

1 SEC. 304. MODIFICATION OF NATIONAL SCHOOL LUNCH 

2 PROGRAM PROCUREMENT REQUIREMENTS 

3 TO ENCOURAGE PURCHASE OF LOWER4 PRICE, NONSTANDARD-SIZE OR -SHAPE 

5 PRODUCE. 

6 Section 9(a)(4)(C) of the Richard B. Russell National 

7 School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1758(a)(4)(C)) is amended 

8 by striking clause (ii) and inserting the following: 

9 ‘‘(ii) in the product specifications and 

10 practices required under clause (i), encour11 age State departments of agriculture and 

12 education, school food authorities, local 

13 educational agencies, and local processing 

14 entities to purchase lower-price, non15 standard-size or -shape produce to be used 

16 in school nutrition programs under this 

17 Act and the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 

18 (42 U.S.C. 1771 et seq.); and’’. 

19 SEC. 305. FARM TO SCHOOL GRANT PROGRAM TO IMPROVE 

20 ACCESS TO LOCAL FOODS IN SCHOOLS AND 

21 REDUCE FOOD WASTE. 

22 Section 18(g)(3) of the Richard B. Russell National 

23 School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1769(g)(3)) is amended— 

24 (1) in subparagraph (A)(v), by inserting ‘‘and 

25 reducing food waste at both the school and farm lev26 els’’ before the semicolon at the end; and 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
20 

•S 1680 IS

1 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

2 ‘‘(D) PRIORITY FOR PROJECTS WITH FOOD

3 WASTE PLANS.—In making awards under this 

4 subsection, the Secretary shall give priority to 

5 eligible schools that have in effect a plan to re6 duce or recover food waste.’’. 

7 TITLE IV—FOOD DATE 

8 LABELING 

9 SEC. 401. DEFINITIONS. 

10 In this title: 

11 (1) ADMINISTERING SECRETARIES.—The term 

12 ‘‘administering Secretaries’’ means— 

13 (A) with respect to products described in 

14 paragraph (4)(A), the Secretary; and 

15 (B) with respect to products described in 

16 paragraph (4)(B), the Secretary of Health and 

17 Human Services. 

18 (2) FOOD LABELER.—The term ‘‘food labeler’’ 

19 means the producer, manufacturer, distributor, or 

20 retailer that places a date label on food packaging 

21 of a product. 

22 (3) QUALITY DATE.—The term ‘‘quality date’’ 

23 means a date voluntarily printed on food packaging 

24 that is intended to communicate to consumers the 

25 date after which the quality of the product may 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
21 

•S 1680 IS

1 begin to deteriorate, but the product remains appar2 ently wholesome food (as defined in section 22(b) of 

3 the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 

4 1791(b))). 

5 (4) READY-TO-EAT PRODUCT.—The term 

6 ‘‘ready-to-eat product’’ means— 

7 (A) with respect to a product under the ju8 risdiction of the Secretary, a product that— 

9 (i) is in a form that is edible without 

10 additional preparation to achieve food safe11 ty and may receive additional preparation 

12 for palatability or aesthetic, epicurean, 

13 gastronomic, or culinary purposes; and 

14 (ii) is— 

15 (I) a poultry product (as defined 

16 in section 4 of the Poultry Products 

17 Inspection Act (21 U.S.C. 453)); 

18 (II) a meat food product (as de19 fined in section 1 of the Federal Meat 

20 Inspection Act (21 U.S.C. 601)); or 

21 (III) an egg product (as defined 

22 in section 4 of the Egg Products In23 spection Act (21 U.S.C. 1033)); and 

24 (B) with respect to a food (as defined in 

25 section 201 of the Federal Food, Drug, and 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
22 

•S 1680 IS

1 Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 321)) under the juris2 diction of the Secretary of Health and Human 

3 Services— 

4 (i) a food that is normally eaten in its 

5 raw state; or 

6 (ii) any other food, including a proc7 essed food, for which it is reasonably fore8 seeable that the food will be eaten without 

9 further processing that would significantly 

10 minimize biological hazards. 

11 (5) SAFETY DATE.—The term ‘‘safety date’’ 

12 means a date printed on food packaging of a high13 risk ready-to-eat product, which signifies the end of 

14 the estimated period of shelf life under any stated 

15 storage conditions, after which the product may pose 

16 a health safety risk. 

17 SEC. 402. QUALITY DATES AND SAFETY DATES. 

18 (a) QUALITY DATES.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—If a food labeler includes a 

20 quality date on food packaging, the label shall use 

21 the uniform quality date label phrase under para22 graph (2). 

23 (2) UNIFORM PHRASE.—The uniform quality 

24 date label phrase under this paragraph shall be 

25 ‘‘BEST If Used By’’, unless and until the adminVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:51 Aug 10, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00022 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1680.IS S1680

sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
23 

•S 1680 IS

1 istering Secretaries, acting jointly, specify through 

2 rulemaking another uniform phrase to be used for 

3 purposes of complying with paragraph (1). 

4 (3) OPTION OF LABELER.—The decision to in5 clude a quality date on food packaging shall be at 

6 the discretion of the food labeler. 

7 (b) SAFETY DATES.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—The label of a ready-to-eat 

9 product that meets the criteria established under 

10 paragraph (3)(A) shall include a safety date deter11 mined under paragraph (3)(B) that is immediately 

12 preceded by the uniform safety date label phrase 

13 under paragraph (2). 

14 (2) UNIFORM PHRASE.—The uniform safety 

15 date label phrase under this paragraph shall be 

16 ‘‘USE By’’, unless and until the administering Sec17 retaries jointly specify through rulemaking another 

18 uniform phrase to be used for purposes of complying 

19 with paragraph (1). 

20 (3) HIGH-RISK READY-TO-EAT PRODUCTS.—The 

21 administering Secretaries, acting jointly, shall issue 

22 guidance— 

23 (A) establishing criteria for determining 

24 the conditions under which ready-to-eat prodVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:51 Aug 10, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00023 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1680.IS S1680

sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
24 

•S 1680 IS

1 ucts may have a high level of risk associated 

2 with consumption after a certain date; and 

3 (B) for determining safety dates for high4 risk ready-to-eat products described in subpara5 graph (A). 

6 (c) QUALITY DATE AND SAFETY DATE LABELING.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—The quality date and safety 

8 date, as applicable, and immediately adjacent uni9 form quality date label phrase or safety date label 

10 phrase shall be— 

11 (A) in single easy-to-read type style; and 

12 (B) located in a conspicuous place on the 

13 package of the food. 

14 (2) DATE FORMAT.—Each quality date and 

15 safety date shall be stated in terms of day and 

16 month and, as appropriate, year. 

17 (3) ABBREVIATIONS.—A food labeler may use a 

18 standard abbreviation of ‘‘BB’’ and ‘‘UB’’ for the 

19 quality date and safety date, respectively, only if the 

20 food packaging is too small to include the uniform 

21 phrase described in subsection (a)(2) or (b)(2), as 

22 applicable. 

23 (4) FREEZE BY.—A food labeler may add ‘‘or 

24 Freeze By’’ following a quality date or safety date 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
25 

•S 1680 IS

1 uniform phrase described in subsection (a)(2) or 

2 (b)(2), as applicable. 

3 (d) SALE OR DONATION AFTER QUALITY DATE.— 

4 The sale, donation, or use of any product shall not be pro5 hibited based on passage of the quality date of the prod6 uct. 

7 (e) EDUCATION.—Not later than 1 year after the 

8 date of enactment of this Act, the administering Secre9 taries, acting jointly, shall provide consumer education 

10 and outreach on the meaning of quality date and safety 

11 date food labels. 

12 (f) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION; PREEMPTION.— 

13 (1) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this 

14 section prohibits any State or political subdivision of 

15 a State from establishing or continuing in effect any 

16 requirement that prohibits the sale or donation of 

17 foods based on passage of the safety date. 

18 (2) PREEMPTION.—No State or political sub19 division of a State may establish or continue in ef20 fect any requirement that— 

21 (A) relates to the inclusion in food labeling 

22 of a quality date or a safety date that is dif23 ferent from or in addition to, or that is other24 wise not identical with, the requirements under 

25 this section; or 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
26 

•S 1680 IS

1 (B) prohibits the sale or donation of foods 

2 based on passage of the quality date. 

3 (3) ENFORCEMENT.—The administering Secre4 taries, acting jointly and in coordination with the 

5 Federal Trade Commission, shall ensure that the 

6 uniform quality date label phrase and uniform safety 

7 date label phrase are standardized across all food 

8 products. 

9 (4) SAVINGS.—Nothing in this Act, any amend10 ment made by this Act, or any standard or require11 ment imposed pursuant to this Act preempts, dis12 places, or supplants any State or Federal common 

13 law rights or any State or Federal statute creating 

14 a remedy for civil relief, including those for civil 

15 damage, or a penalty for criminal conduct. 

16 (g) TIME TEMPERATURE INDICATOR LABELS.— 

17 Nothing in this section prohibits or restricts the use of 

18 time-temperature indicator labels or similar technology 

19 that is consistent with the requirements of this Act. 

20 SEC. 403. MISBRANDING VIOLATION FOR QUALITY DATES 

21 AND SAFETY DATES IN FOOD LABELING. 

22 (a) FDA VIOLATIONS.—Section 403 of the Federal 

23 Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 343) is amend24 ed by adding at the end the following: 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
27 

•S 1680 IS

1 ‘‘(z) if its labeling is in violation of section 402 of 

2 the Food Recovery Act of 2017 (relating to quality dates 

3 and safety dates).’’. 

4 (b) POULTRY PRODUCTS.—Section 4(h) of the Poul5 try Products Inspection Act (21 U.S.C. 453(h)) is amend6 ed— 

7 (1) in paragraph (11), by striking ‘‘or’’ at the 

8 end; 

9 (2) in paragraph (12), by striking the period at 

10 the end and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

11 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(13) if it does not bear a label in accordance 

13 with section 402 of the Food Recovery Act of 

14 2017.’’. 

15 (c) MEAT PRODUCTS.—Section 1(n) of the Federal 

16 Meat Inspection Act (21 U.S.C. 601(n)) is amended— 

17 (1) in paragraph (11), by striking ‘‘or’’ at the 

18 end; 

19 (2) in paragraph (12), by striking the period at 

20 the end and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

21 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

22 ‘‘(13) if it does not bear a label in accordance 

23 with section 402 of the Food Recovery Act of 

24 2017.’’. 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
28 

•S 1680 IS

1 (d) EGG PRODUCTS.—Section 7(b) of the Egg Prod2 ucts Inspection Act (21 U.S.C. 1036(b)) is amended in 

3 the first sentence by adding before the period at the end 

4 ‘‘or if it does not bear a label in accordance with section 

5 402 of the Food Recovery Act of 2017’’. 

6 SEC. 404. REGULATIONS AND GUIDANCE. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 years after the 

8 date of enactment of this Act, the administering Secre9 taries, acting jointly, shall— 

10 (1) promulgate final regulations for carrying 

11 out this title and the amendments made by this title 

12 (other than section 402(b)(3)); and 

13 (2) issue the guidance required by section 

14 402(b)(3). 

15 (b) UPDATES TO GUIDANCE.—Not less frequently 

16 than once every 4 years, the administering Secretaries, 

17 acting jointly, shall review and, as the administering Sec18 retaries determine to be appropriate, update the guidance 

19 required by section 402(b)(3). 

20 SEC. 405. DELAYED APPLICABILITY. 

21 This title and the amendments made by this title 

22 shall apply only with respect to food products that are la23 beled on or after the date that is 2 years after the date 

24 on which final regulations are promulgated under section 

25 404(a)(1). 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
29 

•S 1680 IS

1 SEC. 406. REPORT TO CONGRESS. 

2 Not later than 5 years after the date of enactment 

3 of this Act, the administering Secretaries, acting jointly, 

4 shall report to the appropriate committees of Congress on 

5 rates of compliance of food labelers with the food date la6 beling requirements under this title and the amendments 

7 made by this title. 

8 TITLE V—CONSUMERS AND 

9 LOCAL INFRASTRUCTURE 

10 SEC. 501. SUPPORT FOR NATIONAL MEDIA CAMPAIGNS TO 

11 DECREASE INCIDENCE OF FOOD WASTE. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall support na13 tional media campaigns to decrease the incidence of food 

14 waste. 

15 (b) MANDATORY FUNDING.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall use 

17 $8,000,000 of funds of the Commodity Credit Cor18 poration to carry out this section for fiscal year 

19 2018. 

20 (2) AVAILABILITY.—Funds described in para21 graph (1) shall remain available until expended. 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
30 

•S 1680 IS

1 SEC. 502. INCREASE IN RESOURCES FOR COMMUNITY FA2 CILITIES LOANS DIRECTED AT COMPOSTING 

3 AND ANAEROBIC DIGESTION FOOD WASTE4 TO-ENERGY OPERATIONS. 

5 Section 306(a)(1) of the Consolidated Farm and 

6 Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1926(a)(1)) is amended 

7 by inserting after the first sentence the following: ‘‘5 per8 cent of the amounts made available for each fiscal year 

9 for loans for essential community facilities under the pre10 ceding sentence shall be reserved for loans, in accordance 

11 with subsection (c)(2), for municipal or county 

12 composting, anaerobic digestion food waste-to-energy 

13 projects, and the conversion of animal waste products into 

14 industrial products or into raw materials that can be con15 verted into finished products other than by anaerobic di16 gestion or the production of bioethanol through fermenta17 tion. The Secretary shall not make or insure a loan under 

18 the preceding sentence to an entity that will use the 

19 amounts under the loan for an anaerobic digester that 

20 uses solely manure as undigested biomass, and shall give 

21 preference to loans under the preceding sentence for an22 aerobic digesters that use primarily nonedible food, crop 

23 waste, or nonedible food and crop waste as undigested bio24 mass.’’. 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
31 

•S 1680 IS

1 SEC. 503. EXPANSION OF RURAL UTILITIES SERVICE 

2 WATER AND WASTE DISPOSAL PROGRAM TO 

3 PROVIDE LOANS AND GRANTS FOR RURAL 

4 COMMUNITIES TO ADAPT WASTE DISPOSAL 

5 FACILITIES TO INCORPORATE ANAEROBIC 

6 DIGESTION FOOD WASTE-TO-ENERGY OPER7 ATIONS. 

8 Section 306 of the Consolidated Farm and Rural De9 velopment Act (7 U.S.C. 1926) is amended by inserting 

10 after subsection (b) the following: 

11 ‘‘(c) WATER OR WASTE DISPOSAL LOANS AND

12 GRANTS FOR PROJECTS TO INCORPORATE ANAEROBIC

13 DIGESTION FOOD WASTE-TO-ENERGY OPERATIONS IN

14 WASTE DISPOSAL FACILITIES.— 

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 

16 provision of law, beginning in fiscal year 2017, in 

17 addition to any other amounts available for water or 

18 waste disposal loans and grants under paragraphs 

19 (1) and (2) of subsection (a), $50,000,000 of the 

20 funds of the Commodity Credit Corporation for each 

21 fiscal year shall be available for those loans and 

22 grants, of which the Secretary shall use— 

23 ‘‘(A) $25,000,000 for loans, in accordance 

24 with paragraph (2), for the adaptation of waste 

25 disposal facilities to incorporate anaerobic di26 gestion food waste-to-energy operations; and 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
32 

•S 1680 IS

1 ‘‘(B) $25,000,000 for grants, in accord2 ance with paragraph (2), for the adaptation of 

3 waste disposal facilities to incorporate anaerobic 

4 digestion food waste-to-energy operations. 

5 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENTS.— 

6 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A loan or grant is 

7 made in accordance with this paragraph if, be8 fore making the loan or grant, the Secretary 

9 has obtained from the recipient of the loan or 

10 grant— 

11 ‘‘(i) a written commitment that the 

12 recipient has read and agrees to comply 

13 with the Food Recovery Hierarchy of the 

14 Environmental Protection Agency, particu15 larly as applied to apparently wholesome 

16 food (as defined in section 22(b) of the 

17 Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 

18 1791(b))) that may be provided to or re19 ceived by the recipient; and 

20 ‘‘(ii) a written end-product recycling 

21 plan that provides for the beneficial use of 

22 the material resulting from any anaerobic 

23 digestion food waste-to-energy operation 

24 with respect to which the loan or grant is 

25 made, in a manner that meets all applicaVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:59 Aug 14, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00032 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1680.IS S1680

sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
33 

•S 1680 IS

1 ble Federal, State, and local laws that pro2 tect human health and the environment. 

3 ‘‘(B) LIMITATION.—A loan or grant under 

4 paragraph (1) may not be used for an anaerobic 

5 digester that uses solely manure as undigested 

6 biomass. 

7 ‘‘(C) PREFERENCE.—The Secretary shall 

8 give preference to loans and grants under para9 graph (1) for anaerobic digesters that use pri10 marily nonedible food, crop waste, or nonedible 

11 food and crop waste as undigested biomass. 

12 ‘‘(3) AVAILABILITY.—Funds made available 

13 under paragraph (1) shall remain available until ex14 pended.’’. 

15 SEC. 504. GRANTS FOR FOOD WASTE MANAGEMENT INFRA16 STRUCTURE. 

17 (a) GRANTS.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in consulta19 tion with the Administrator of the Environmental 

20 Protection Agency, shall establish a program under 

21 which the Secretary shall provide grants to reduce 

22 food waste in accordance with the Food Recovery 

23 Hierarchy of the Environmental Protection Agency 

24 (or a successor document), including for— 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
34 

•S 1680 IS

1 (A) the development and implementation of 

2 a State organic waste reduction plan; 

3 (B) food waste prevention and food rescue 

4 infrastructure facilities, including storage, han5 dling, and transportation facilities; or 

6 (C) subject to paragraph (3), large-scale 

7 composting or anaerobic digestion food waste8 to-energy projects, excluding landfills. 

9 (2) PREFERENCES.—In providing grants under 

10 paragraph (1), the Secretary shall give preference to 

11 projects— 

12 (A)(i) for the purpose described in para13 graph (1)(A); or 

14 (ii) that are consistent with a State or15 ganic waste reduction plan; and 

16 (B) in the case of a project for the purpose 

17 described in paragraph (1)(C), that use food 

18 scraps as undigested biomass. 

19 (3) REQUIREMENT FOR FOOD WASTE-TO-EN20 ERGY PROJECTS.—To receive a grant under para21 graph (1)(C), a large-scale composting or anaerobic 

22 digestion food waste-to-energy project shall have in 

23 effect a written end-product recycling plan that— 

24 (A) provides for the use of the material re25 sulting from the project, in accordance with 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
35 

•S 1680 IS

1 guidelines that the Administrator of the Envi2 ronmental Protection Agency shall establish; 

3 and 

4 (B) ensures that the use of the material 

5 resulting from the project does not create an 

6 environmental hazard. 

7 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

8 authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

9 $100,000,000 for each fiscal year. 

10 SEC. 505. GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE AUDIT. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 years after the 

12 date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General 

13 of the United States (referred to in this section as the 

14 ‘‘Comptroller General’’) shall conduct an audit to assess 

15 estimates of postharvest food loss and waste in the United 

16 States, including estimates by the Department of Agri17 culture and other government, academic, and industry 

18 stakeholders. 

19 (b) REQUIREMENTS.—The Comptroller General, as 

20 part of the audit conducted under subsection (a)— 

21 (1) shall— 

22 (A) assess the extent to which the esti23 mates described in that subsection provide a 

24 valid benchmark for the amount and value of 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
36 

•S 1680 IS

1 postharvest food loss and waste in the United 

2 States; 

3 (B) evaluate the reliability of the data, and 

4 the validity and accuracy of the assumptions 

5 and models, underlying the estimates; and 

6 (C) if appropriate, include recommenda7 tions to improve the estimates; and 

8 (2) if the Comptroller General determines that 

9 the estimates described in that subsection are invalid 

10 under paragraph (1)(A), may conduct an estimate of 

11 postharvest food loss and waste in the United 

12 States. 

Æ 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS