FY 2019-20 Food Waste Prevention and Rescue Grant Program

The application for fiscal year (FY) 2021-22 and 2022-23 is now closed.

Awards | Criteria | Eligibility | Funding | Timeline and Cycle Details | Grant Administration Documents

The Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery (CalRecycle) administers the Food Waste Prevention and Rescue Grant Program pursuant to Public Resources Code section 42999 of the Public Resources Code. The purpose of this competitive grant program
is to lower overall greenhouse gas emissions by expanding existing or establishing new food waste prevention and/or rescue projects in California to reduce the amount of food being disposed in landfills.

The Food Waste Prevention and Rescue Grant Program is part of California Climate Investments, a statewide program that puts billions of Cap-and-Trade dollars to work reducing greenhouse gas emissions, strengthening the economy and improving public health
and the environment—particularly in disadvantaged and low-income communities. The Cap-and-Trade program also creates a financial incentive for industries to invest in clean technologies and develop innovative ways to reduce pollution. California
Climate Investment projects include affordable housing, renewable energy, public transportation, zero-emission vehicles, environmental restoration, more sustainable agriculture, recycling and much more. For more information, visit California Climate Investments.

Submitted Application Listing

Per California Climate Investments Funding Guidelines a listing of all submitted applications for this cycle is available. This includes submitted applications that may not be selected for funding. Any additional information of interest may be made available after the cycle is awarded via California Public Records Act Request.

Awards

Note: “FW” followed by a number is the cycle code for the Food Waste Prevention and Rescue Grant Program.
Cycle 4: FW4 Awards | Approval of Awards, April 19, 2021

Criteria

Approval of Criteria, August 20, 2020

Eligibility

Applicants

Only two distinct and separate applications per qualifying entity will be accepted (this also applies to each campus for the University of California, the California State University, or California Community Colleges). Eligible applicants may submit an individual, cooperative (typically for two or more private entities), or regional application (typically for two or more local government entities). For a cooperative or regional application, one entity must be identified as the lead participant to act on behalf of the participating entities. A maximum of three other participants are allowed because it is not efficient for one entity to administer the grant on behalf of a large number of participants. Lead participants and participating entities are subject to the two-application rule. Eligible applicants include:

  • Local governments (cities, counties, or cities and counties)
    • Cities, counties, and cities and counties as defined in Public Resources Code section 30109
    • Regional or local sanitation agencies, waste agencies, or joint powers authorities
  • Nonprofit organizations (except private schools) registered with the federal government under 501(c)3, (c)4, (c)6 or (c)10 of the Internal Revenue Code
  • B-Corp and Benefit Corporations
  • Private, for-profit entities.  A “private, for-profit entity” is defined as a business intended to operate at a profit and return a profit to its owners.  The business must be qualified to do business in California and be in good standing with all applicable California state agencies, including, but not limited to, the Secretary of State and the Franchise Tax Board.  Any and all subsidiaries, divisions or affiliated businesses are considered part of the primary business entity for the purpose of applying for and receiving a grant award.  A business is considered an “affiliated business” if it has at least one owner with a forty (40) percent or greater interest in another applicant business
  • State or federal agencies (including offices, department, bureaus, and boards)
  • University of California campuses, California State University campuses, or the California Community College campuses.
  • Solid Waste Facilities
  • Public School Districts
  • Qualifying Indian Tribes, defined as an Indian tribe, band, nation or other organized group or community, residing within the borders of California, which:
    1. Is recognized for special programs and services provided by the United States to Indians because of the status of its members as Indians; or
    2. Can establish that it is a government entity and that meets the criteria of the grant program

CalRecycle requires that any application that includes a charter city (either as an individual applicant, as part of a joint application, or as a member of an applicant Joint Powers Authority) include a certification by the applicant that all charter cities included in the application are eligible to receive grant funds for the project described in the application. If it is later found that grant funds were received in violation of Labor Code section 1782, the grant will be terminated, and the grantee will be required to return any grant funds.

Projects

Eligible projects include:

  • Food waste prevention projects that prevent food waste from being generated and becoming waste that is normally destined for landfills.
  • Food rescue projects that result in rescued food being distributed to people, that would otherwise be destined for landfills.
    • Any food waste residuals from the food rescue project must be composted or sent to a digester within the project service area (if available).

Eligible expenses and activities will be described in the application documents. Eligible expenses will include, but are not limited to: refrigeration systems, refrigerated vehicles, personnel, food waste prevention tracking equipment/software, and food preparation items.

Project Requirements

Projects must be located in California and result in permanent, annual, and measurable:

  1. Reductions in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions attributed to the production, processing, packaging, distribution, and landfilling of California-generated food waste; and
  2. Increases in quantity (tons) of California-generated food waste, newly diverted from landfills, and prevented or rescued from disposal.

“Newly diverted” means the tons of materials that are currently being landfilled that will instead be diverted as a result of this project.

Projects resulting in a net increase of GHG emissions are ineligible and will not be recommended for funding.

Funding

  • $4,000,000 available for fiscal year (FY) 2019-20.
  • $150,000 minimum and $300,000 maximum per grant award

Timeline and Cycle Details

Grant Administration Documents

Terms and Conditions (PDF)
Notice: Submission of an application constitutes an acknowledgment that you have read these Terms and Conditions and understood and agreed that they will be part of the Grant Agreement upon an award of any grant funds.

The text of these Terms and Conditions may not be altered, changed or revised in any way, except in writing by mutual agreement of the parties pursuant to the Amendment provision herein.  In the event of any dispute regarding the content of these Terms and Conditions, the original document contained in the grant cycle file located at the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery, 1001 I Street, Sacramento, CA 95814 will control.

Procedures and Requirements (PDF)
Notice: These Procedures and Requirements are in draft form.  Upon issuance of Grant Agreement, these Procedures and Requirements shall become final.

The Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery reserves the right to make any necessary changes to the Procedures and Requirements prior to issuance of the Grant Agreement.  Any such changes will be non-negotiable.  In the event that any changes are made to the Procedures and Requirements, all Grantees will be notified as to what specific changes have been made.

Once the Grant Agreement has been issued and the Procedures and Requirements have become final, the text of the incorporated Procedures and Requirements may not be altered, changed or revised in any way, except in writing by mutual agreement of the parties pursuant to the Amendment provision contained in the Terms and Conditions.  In the event of any dispute regarding the content of the incorporated Procedures and Requirements, the original document contained in the grant cycle file located at the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery, 1001 I Street, Sacramento, CA 95814 will control.  These Procedures and Requirements are applicable only to the specific cycle and/or Fiscal Year of the particular grant program specified.

If you require assistance in obtaining access to these documents, please contact: grantassistance@calrecycle.ca.gov.

Food Waste Prevention and Rescue Grant Program Homepage

For more information, contact GHGreductions@calrecycle.ca.gov