Organic Waste Reduction SB-1383

 California State Senate Bill 1383 (SB 1383), requires the reduction of organic waste disposed of in landfills. Organic waste is comprised of food scraps and food-soiled paper from kitchens and food operations and yard waste such as garden and landscape waste, organic textiles and carpets and wood waste.

 SB 1383 requires that each resident and business, must subscribe to an organic waste collection service that either “source-separates” the waste (e.g. separate bins), or transports all unsegregated waste to a facility that recovers 75 percent of the organic content collected from the system. 

 Who Must Comply?

• Residents
• Commercial businesses
• Commercial food generators
• Schools
• Government entities

 Residential Organic Waste Collection Program

 The City together with EDCO Waste & Recycling Services will be launching the new Organics Recycling Program. National City residents will be provided with up to three commingled green carts that will co-collect food scraps and yard waste. The organic material collected will be taken to EDCO’s Anaerobic Digestion Facility in Escondido, CA to be converted into renewable natural gas and anaerobic compost.

 For more information on how to subscribe to the collection program, click here

 Food Recovery from Businesses

Californians throw away nearly 6 million tons of food scraps or food waste each year. This represents about 18 percent of all the material that goes to landfills. In order for California to reach its goal of 75% source reduction, recycling and composting, food waste must be addressed. 

Starting in 2022, large food-service businesses must donate surplus edible food to food recovery organizations with additional businesses starting in 2024. California is working towards a 2025 goal to redirect and donate 20% of edible food to those in need.

The Regional Solid Waste Association (RSWA) has budgeted to support the RSWA member cities (Encinitas, Escondido, National City, Poway, Solana Beach, Vista, Del Mar) to hire Solana Center and San Diego Food System Alliance to provide compliance support services for the Edible Food Recovery portion of SB 1383.

Edible food means food intended for people to eat, including food not sold because of:

• Appearance
• Age
• Freshness
• Grade
• Size
• Surplus 

Edible food includes but is not limited to: 

•  Prepared foods
•  Packaged foods
•  Produce 

Per the National City Municipal Code Section 9.52.060 and in compliance with SB 1383, edible food generators are required to:

1.  Donate the maximum amount of edible food to food recovery organizations.

         Where to Donate?  Click here

      2. Establish contracts or written agreements with food recovery organizations and services (template  of written agreement here). 

      3. Track the amount of edible food donated by weight and maintain up-to-date records.

         CalRecycle has provided information about the requirements on their website: here

SB 1383 places mandated food donors into two tiers. This tier system allows businesses and jurisdictions more time to prepare to expand or build new food recovery infrastructure and capacity to donate foods that are harder to safely store and distribute. 

 The regulations require mandated food donors to donate for people to eat the maximum amount of their edible food that would otherwise be disposed. Tier 1 generators are required to donate starting in 2022. Tier 2 generators are required to donate starting in 2024.

To ensure that the maximum amount of edible food is recovered, the regulations require that mandated food donors establish contracts or written agreements with food recovery organizations and services.

Food recovery organizations and services vary in the amount and types of food they can receive, so mandated food donors may need to establish contracts or written agreements with multiple food recovery organizations and services to be in compliance.

 Commercial Edible Food Generators: Tier 1 & Tier 2

 The San Diego Food System Alliance held a 1-hour webinar Food Donation 101: Best Practices for Starting a Food Donation Program of the overview of SB 1383 requirements with a breakdown of food donation best practices for your business. The webinar recording can be accessed here

Food Recovery & Hunger Organizations

The San Diego Food Systems Alliance, San Diego Food Bank, Feeding San Diego, and County of San Diego are reaching out to food recovery and hunger relief organizations to inform them about state law SB 1383 that will change the dynamics of food recovery in San Diego County. A 1-hour virtual webinar, sponsored by the Regional Solid Waste Association (RSWA), was held on October 7^th.

As a follow-up from the webinar, below are some links and resources:

• Webinar Recording: the full recording of the live webinar can be found here. The presentation slides are also attached.

• SB 1383 Overview for Hunger Relief Nonprofits: attached is a two-page handout that provides a high-level overview of SB 1383 and summarizes most of the content covered during the webinar presentation. This handout can also be accessed electronically here

• Jurisdiction Contacts for SB 1383: also attached is a contact list for each city. If you have questions about your reporting or recordkeeping requirements under SB 1383, please locate your city representatives in this document and contact them directly here

Finally, food recovery and hunger relief organizations are asked to please monitor your email inbox for the Food Recovery Capacity Survey that will be sent out by the County of San Diego later this month. As a reminder, completion of this survey is a requirement of SB 1383, and food recovery organizations must complete the survey within 60 days of receiving it.