Frequent Questions about the U.S. EPA Excess Food Opportunities Map
The U.S. EPA Excess Food Opportunities Map supports nationwide diversion of excess food from landfills through the identification and display of establishment-specific information about potential generators and recipients of excess food. Through analysis of the data presented in the map, users may be able to identify infrastructure gaps, assess the feasibility of developing new recipient facilities and identify alternatives to landfill disposal. If your question is not answered below, please contact SMMFood@epa.gov.
On this page:
Map Background
1. Who is the intended audience for the map?
State and local governments, Tribes, food recovery organizations, users of excess food as a feedstock and generators of excess food.
2. How does U.S. EPA define excess food for the map?
For the map, the phrase “excess food” generally refers to food—whether processed, semi-processed, or raw—that is not used for its intended purpose and is managed in a variety of ways, such as donation to feed people, creation of animal feed, composting, anaerobic digestion, or sending to landfills or combustion facilities. EPA often refers to this as “wasted food”. However, because U.S. EPA’s goal is to maximize recovery and beneficial use of all discarded organics, some organic materials were included in the map that are not intended for human consumption, such as inedible parts (e.g., pits, rinds, bones) discarded in kitchens or during processing and yard waste collected by municipal services (i.e., communities with residential source separated organics that collect yard waste and excess food). Furthermore, the residential and agricultural sectors, which can also generate excess food, are not included in the map.
3. Does the map provide an estimate of total excess food in the United States?
No. The map provides estimates of excess food generated at the establishment level based on a set of assumptions specific to each type of excess food generator (e.g., hotel, school). These assumptions do not address existing waste diversion activities that establishments might already be performing. U.S. EPA estimates of excess food nationwide are available via EPA's Wasted Food Reports and include manufacturing and processing, retail, food service and residential sectors.
4. Does the map provide estimates of recipient capacity for excess food?
No. However, in some cases, the map provides contact information that can be used to learn more about their operations and information about types of materials accepted.
5. Can I download data from the map?
Yes. There are two ways to download data: via the map interface and via EPA’s Environmental Dataset Gateway (EDG). In the map interface, data download is limited to the first 1,000 records displayed for the selected map view through the attribute table. Complete datasets for generators, and recipients, refrigerated warehousing and storage, and communities with source separated organics are available for download via EPA’s EDG and provide data for the entire nation. Use this link to access the dataset. You may need additional software to view the dataset. Refer to EPA's Free Readers and Viewers webpage. Further detail about how to download data is available in the User Guide for the U.S. EPA Excess Food Opportunities Map.
6. Will the map be updated in the future?
Yes, there will be future versions of the map. Updates to data and generation methodologies will be made periodically based on data and resource allocation availability.
The current version of the map is Version 3.0, updated July 13 2023.
Update announcements will be posted on the U.S. EPA Excess Food Opportunities Map web page.
Technical Specifications
1. Where can I get more information about the data and methodology supporting the map?
The technical methodology provides this information.
2. How many and what type of establishments are included in the map?
Nearly 950,000 potential generators of excess food in nine categories (correctional facilities, educational institutions, food banks, food manufacturers and processors, food wholesale and retail, healthcare facilities, hospitality establishments, restaurants and food services, and farmers markets) and about 6,500 potential recipients of excess food (i.e., food banks, composting facilities and anaerobic digestion facilities) appear in the map. There are also roughly 600 refrigerated warehouse and storage facilities in the map, and over 200 communities with source separated organics programs. Additional information and the full list of NAICS codes associated with excess food generators is available in the technical methodology.
3. Why were layers added from EPA’s EJScreen and USDA’s Food Environment Atlas?
Environmental Justice (EJ) is a critical part of EPA’s work, and these new data layers from EJScreen and USDA can be used in concert with excess food estimates to drive policy decisions, investments, and actions to feed people.
EPA’s EJScreen is an environmental justice mapping tool that combines environmental and socioeconomic demographic indicators for geographic areas. Additionally, EJScreen includes other data relevant to excess food recovery, such as food access data (originally sourced from USDA). Layers from USDA’s Food Environment Atlas provide data on food insecurity and food assistance, including participation in programs such as SNAP, WIC, and the National School Lunch Program.
The map allows users to view EJ data, food assistance and food security data, and excess food generation data simultaneously to help facilitate investment, policy development, or action to get food to people who need it. For example, users can view an area of interest and use the map to answer questions such as: Are there low rates of food access? What are the region’s demographics? Are there food banks nearby? Are there establishments, such as schools or grocery stores, generating excess food that could be rescued and redistributed? EPA anticipates that the combination of excess food estimates, food assistance, food insecurity, and food access data, and EJ data could help users identify geographic areas where appropriate investment, infrastructure, policy and action can increase food access, improve system efficiencies and keep wholesome, nutritious food in the human supply chain and out of landfills.
4. What are the sources of the data?
The data comes from public and commercially available sources including DnB, the Department of Homeland Security, the National Center for Education Statistics, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, U.S. Census, state websites and studies, municipal and county websites, BioCycle, Food Waste Reduction Alliance, peer-reviewed articles, and internal EPA databases, among other sources. For more detail, please see the technical methodology.
5. How did U.S. EPA generate the estimates of excess food for each establishment?
U.S. EPA conducted a literature review to identify studies that used formulas to estimate excess food generation rates in each industry and adopted multiple formulas for various sectors, resulting in a high and low excess food estimate for most establishments. The data required as input for the formulas were common business statistics, such as revenue or employee count, and obtained primarily from DnB, the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The formulas, their sources and their inputs are detailed in the technical methodology.
6. Why is there no excess food estimate available for some establishments?
The excess food generation estimates are based on equations that require common business statistics that U.S. EPA obtained from several sources (commercially and publicly available). In limited cases, there were no establishment-specific business statistics available, which means there is not an excess food estimate for all establishments. In these cases, while the establishment is included in the map, the estimate field is blank. The map provides an estimate for roughly 90% percent of mapped establishments.
7. Why might an establishment be missing from the map?
There are several reasons why an establishment may be missing from the map:
a. The establishment may not be associated with the NAICS codes and industries chosen for the map (the full list is available as part of the technical methodology).
b. The establishment was not included in the data EPA acquired from DnB, DHS, NCES, and USDA at the time that EPA downloaded data from these sources.
c. The facility did not appear on lists or in databases maintained by EPA, state or local governments, or industry associations, or it did not appear in internet searches.
8. How accurate are the establishment-specific estimates of excess food generation rates?
The estimates are based on common business statistics taken primarily from DnB, the Department of Homeland Security, and the National Center for Education Statistics, and combined with methodologies that use generation factors based on limited measured data which ranges in age. The estimates do not account for any actual diversion activity that the establishment or facility may be implementing, such as donation, composting, etc. More information about the limitations of the methodology is available in the technical methodology.
9. Can I send in accurate, measured information for my company which can be used to update the map?
No. U.S. EPA intends for the map to reflect a standard methodology and for it to be used, in combination with other publicly available tools and resources, to support excess food diversion and not as a reference reflecting a mix of actual and estimated activity.
10. What changes were made in Version 3.0 of the map?
Version 3.0 includes two additional types of healthcare facilities (nursing homes and residential care facilities), two additional hotel types (bed-and-breakfast inns and other), farmers markets, and refrigerated warehousing and storage facilities. Updates were made to datasets for all generators, and despite expanding the number of generator sectors, the overall number of generators decreased from about 1.2 million to about 950,000 since Version 2.1 due to businesses closing during that timeframe. All recipient data sets were updated. The number of recipients (composting facilities, anaerobic digestion facilities, and food banks) increased from about 5,000 to about 6,500, and mapped communities with source-separated organics programs increased from 221 to 275.
Environmental Justice (EJ) data is also a new component of the map in Version 3.0 and incorporates data layers from EPA EJScreen. EJScreen is an environmental justice mapping tool that combines environmental and socioeconomic demographic indicators for geographic areas. EJScreen layers incorporated into Version 3.0 include EJScreen Indexes (combined environmental and socioeconomic demographic indicators), Pollution and Sources, Socioeconomic Indicators, Health data, and Critical Services gaps, including Food Access data from the USDA Food Access Research Atlas. Data layers on food insecurity and food assistance are also incorporated in Version 3.0 from the USDA Food Environment Atlas. Full functionality and more information on EJScreen and USDA data layers are available in the original maps.
EJ is a critical part of EPA’s work, EPA hopes these new data layers will be used in concert with food waste estimates to drive policy decisions, investments, and actions to increase food access, improve system efficiencies, and keep wholesome, nutritious food in the human supply chain and out of landfills.