An Act To Reduce Food Waste in Maine
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1. 38 MRSA §2137-A is enacted to read:
§ 2137-A. Food recovery database
The department, as resources allow and in consultation with other state agencies, municipalities, counties, businesses and other public or private entities, shall develop and maintain on its publicly accessible website a food recovery database as described in this section.
1. Contents. The department may include in the database required under this section guidance documents, model policies, program resources and other educational and technical materials relevant to food recovery and food waste reduction efforts that may be implemented by government entities, counties, municipalities, educational institutions, businesses and members of the public, including, but not limited to:
A. Materials relating to the alignment of the food purchasing practices of public and private entities with the demands and consumption habits of the individual consumers those entities serve;
B. Materials relating to the development and implementation of programs for the sharing of surplus or leftover food, including, but not limited to, share tables and food donation practices and programs;
C. Materials relating to the diversion of food scraps and other food waste not suitable for human consumption for use as animal feed; and
D. Materials relating to the handling, transportation and processing of organic waste materials for the purpose of composting or the generation of energy through an anaerobic digestion process, including, but not limited to, guidance documents relating to the establishment of on-site composting programs by public or private entities and a list of the businesses and other entities in the State that accept for processing or process organic materials for composting or energy generation.
2. Maintenance and updates. The department, as resources allow, shall maintain and periodically review and update the materials in the database required under this section to reflect changes in relevant state or federal laws, regulations or rules or in industry practices or to include any new materials relevant to the purpose of the database that have been developed by the department or by other entities.
Effective 90 days following adjournment of the 128th Legislature, Second Regular Session, unless otherwise indicated.