Food Waste Reduction in Public Schools

Representative Hugh McKean Colorado Youth Advisory Council Review Committee. The bill encourages each local education provider to adopt a policy to reduce food waste in school cafeterias and food preparation facilities (policy). The policy may address food waste diversion and aversion initiatives, including composting and share tables that permit students to return whole food or beverage items for redistribution to other students or donation to local nonprofits. The policy may address permissible food and beverage redistribution practices, food safety measures, communications with students and parents about food waste reduction efforts, and training and compensation for school personnel supervising the local education provider's implementation of the policy. A local education provider that implements a policy shall comply with all applicable sanitation and health requirements, including protocols to prevent student exposure to allergens, and shall require school personnel who engage in food or beverage redistribution to complete related safety training.

Current law establishes the Colorado circular communities enterprise (enterprise) to award grants and other funding and to provide technical assistance to certain entities throughout the state, including local governments, nonprofit and for-profit businesses, public and private schools, and institutions of higher education, that pursue a circular economy for waste management, including waste diversion and aversion. The bill requires the enterprise to consider reducing food waste by incentivizing public schools to develop and implement effective composting or share table programs.

The bill extends limited immunity from civil and criminal liability to school personnel and local education providers that supervise food and beverage redistribution pursuant to policies that include share tables.

(Note: Italicized words indicate new material added to the original summary; dashes through words indicate deletions from the original summary.)

(Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)