I 
119TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 7144 
To amend the Emergency Food Assistance Act of 1983 to establish a national 
food rescue system through partnerships with food rescue organizations. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JANUARY 16, 2026 
Mr. TORRES of New York introduced the following bill; which was referred 
to the Committee on Agriculture 
A BILL 
To amend the Emergency Food Assistance Act of 1983 to 
establish a national food rescue system through partner-
ships with food rescue organizations. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Food Rescue Act’’. 
SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF NATIONAL FOOD RESCUE SYS-
TEM. 
The Emergency Food Assistance Act of 1983 (7 
U.S.C. 7501 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end 
the following: 
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‘‘SEC. 216. NATIONAL FOOD RESCUE SYSTEM. 
‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary of Agri-
culture, acting through the Food and Nutrition Service, 
shall establish and operate a national food rescue system 
to coordinate the recovery, processing, transportation, and 
distribution of surplus and donated food to emergency 
feeding organizations and food-insecure communities. 
‘‘(b) ACTIVITIES.—In carrying out subsection (a), 
food rescue organizations shall— 
‘‘(1) identify sources of surplus or excess food 
across the agricultural, retail, manufacturing, and 
distribution sectors; 
‘‘(2) develop and maintain partnerships with 
nonprofit food rescue organizations, food banks, and 
local agencies to recover and distribute such food; 
‘‘(3) expand and strengthen logistics and infra-
structure necessary for food rescue, including aggre-
gation sites, transportation, cold-chain storage, and 
last-mile delivery; 
‘‘(4) support technology platforms and data sys-
tems used to identify, track, and redirect surplus 
food; and 
‘‘(5) provide technical assistance to partici-
pating entities to enhance efficiency and coordina-
tion. 
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‘‘(c) GRANT PROGRAM.—To carry out this section, 
the Secretary shall establish a competitive grant program 
to support activities described in subsection (b). 
‘‘(d) ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.—Grants under this section 
shall be awarded to food rescue organizations, which may 
carry out projects in partnership with food banks, food 
recovery networks, State, local, Tribal, or Territorial gov-
ernments, logistics providers, front-line emergency food 
providers, and other relevant partners. 
‘‘(e) USE OF FUNDS.—Grant funds may be used 
for— 
‘‘(1) food rescue and recovery operations, in-
cluding gleaning and aggregation; 
‘‘(2) transportation and delivery of surplus 
food, including cold-chain logistics; 
‘‘(3) storage, processing, or repackaging infra-
structure needed for redistribution; 
‘‘(4) technology used to match surplus food 
with receiving organizations in real time; 
‘‘(5) personnel, equipment, or operational needs 
that support food rescue activities; and 
‘‘(6) administrative costs, as determined appro-
priate by the Secretary. 
‘‘(f) APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS.—An eligible enti-
ty seeking a grant under this section shall submit an appli-
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cation to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and 
containing such information as the Secretary may require, 
including— 
‘‘(1) a description of the proposed project and 
expected food-rescue impact, including estimated 
pounds of food recovered and households served; 
‘‘(2) identification of participating partners, in-
cluding producers, distributors, retailers, or logistics 
entities; 
‘‘(3) a budget and implementation timeline; and 
‘‘(4) a plan for sourcing, transporting, storing, 
and delivering surplus food to emergency feeding or-
ganizations and food-insecure communities. 
‘‘(g) COORDINATION.—The Secretary shall coordi-
nate activities under this section with— 
‘‘(1) programs authorized under the Emergency 
Food Assistance Act of 1983; 
‘‘(2) the Farm-to-Food Bank Project estab-
lished under section 203D; and 
‘‘(3) other USDA efforts to reduce food loss 
and waste. 
‘‘(h) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 
are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be 
necessary to carry out this section.’’. 
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SEC. 3. CONFORMING AMENDMENT. 
Section 203D(b) of the Emergency Food Assistance 
Act of 1983 (7 U.S.C. 7507(b)) is amended by inserting 
‘‘(excluding funds appropriated under section 216)’’ after 
‘‘appropriated under this Act’’. 
Æ 
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