SENATE ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY COMMITTEE

STATEMENT TO

SENATE, No. 3027

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

DATED:  March 13, 2017

      The Senate Environment and Energy Committee favorably reports Senate Bill No. 3027.

      This bill would establish for the State a goal of reducing, by the year 2030, the amount of food waste generated annually in the State by 50 percent of that amount which is generated in the year this bill takes effect.

      The bill would require the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), in consultation with the Department of Agriculture (DOA) and within one year, to develop and commence implementation of a plan to accomplish the 50 percent State food waste reduction goal.  The DEP would be required to hold at least three public hearings during the development of the plan to seek public input thereon.  The departments also would be authorized to consult and coordinate with other governmental entities and private, nonprofit, or charitable associations, organizations, or businesses, such as those in the agricultural, grocery, restaurant, food manufacturer, food supply, food bank, food pantry, and healthcare sectors of the food industry, in developing and implementing the plan.

      As part of the plan, the DEP, in consultation with the DOA, would be required to make such recommendations for any administrative or legislative action deemed necessary to further progress toward achieving the State food waste reduction goal.