Food Rescue Act

The Secretary of Agriculture, 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.

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 infrastructure necessary for food rescue, including aggregation sites, transportation, cold-chain storage, and last-mile delivery;

(4) support technology platforms and data systems used to identify, track, and redirect surplus food; and

(5) provide technical assistance to participating entities to enhance efficiency and coordination.

To carry out this section, the Secretary shall establish a competitive grant program to support activities described in subsection (b).

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 governments, logistics providers, front-line emergency food providers, and other relevant partners.

Grant funds may be used for—

(1) food rescue and recovery operations, including gleaning and aggregation;

(2) transportation and delivery of surplus food, including cold-chain logistics;

(3) storage, processing, or repackaging infrastructure 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 appropriate by the Secretary.

An eligible entity seeking a grant under this section shall submit an application 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, including 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 organizations and food-insecure communities.

The Secretary shall coordinate activities under this section with—

(1) programs authorized under the Emergency Food Assistance Act of 1983;

(2) the Farm-to-Food Bank Project established under section 203D; and

(3) other USDA efforts to reduce food loss and waste.

There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary to carry out this section.