In the United States, 31 percent of our food supply is wasted. This also means that all the water, energy and resources put into growing and providing that food are wasted. To help reduce this waste, ADEQ is an endorser for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Waste Food Scale.

ADEQ encourages people to utilize the most preferred pathways — prevent wasted food, donate and upcycle food. These offer the most benefits to the environment and to a circular economy. The top pathways prioritize using food for its intended purpose: to nourish people, which helps to protect public health. The least preferred pathways — landfilling, incineration, and sending food down the drain — have the largest environmental impacts and have limited potential for circularity.

Learn more about how youcan tip the wasted food scales to benefit our food insecure families in Arizona and build better soil for our local farms | View Wasted Food Scale >