{"id":1761,"date":"2024-08-13T11:25:52","date_gmt":"2024-08-13T15:25:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dep.nj.gov\/dshw\/?page_id=1761"},"modified":"2025-12-05T10:55:45","modified_gmt":"2025-12-05T15:55:45","slug":"schools","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/dshw\/swpl\/fw\/schools\/","title":{"rendered":"Food Waste &#8211; Schools"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>[vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space][breadcrumb-shortcode][vc_column_text css=&#8221;&#8221;]<\/p>\n<h1 style=\"text-align: center\">Food Waste &#8211; Schools<\/h1>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]<div id=\"mega-menu-wrap-max_mega_menu_2\" class=\"mega-menu-wrap\"><div class=\"mega-menu-toggle\"><div class=\"mega-toggle-blocks-left\"><\/div><div class=\"mega-toggle-blocks-center\"><\/div><div class=\"mega-toggle-blocks-right\"><div class='mega-toggle-block mega-menu-toggle-animated-block mega-toggle-block-0' id='mega-toggle-block-0'><button aria-controls=\"mega-menu-max_mega_menu_2\" aria-expanded=\"false\" aria-haspopup=\"true\" aria-label=\"Toggle Menu\" class=\"mega-toggle-animated mega-toggle-animated-slider\" type=\"button\">\n                  <span class=\"mega-toggle-animated-box\">\n                    <span class=\"mega-toggle-animated-inner\"><\/span>\n                  <\/span>\n                <\/button><\/div><\/div><\/div><ul id=\"mega-menu-max_mega_menu_2\" class=\"mega-menu max-mega-menu mega-menu-horizontal mega-no-js\" data-event=\"hover_intent\" data-effect=\"fade_up\" data-effect-speed=\"200\" data-effect-mobile=\"disabled\" data-effect-speed-mobile=\"0\" data-panel-width=\"#nav-main-width\" data-mobile-force-width=\"body\" data-second-click=\"go\" data-document-click=\"collapse\" data-vertical-behaviour=\"standard\" data-breakpoint=\"991\" data-unbind=\"true\" data-mobile-state=\"collapse_all\" data-mobile-direction=\"vertical\"><li class=\"mega-menu-item mega-menu-item-type-post_type mega-menu-item-object-page mega-has-icon mega-icon-right mega-menu-item-1877\" id=\"mega-menu-item-1877\"><a class=\"dashicons-admin-home mega-menu-link\" href=\"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/dshw\/swpl\/fw\/\">Food Waste<\/a><\/li><li class=\"mega-menu-item mega-menu-item-type-post_type mega-menu-item-object-page mega-menu-item-1876\" id=\"mega-menu-item-1876\"><a class=\"mega-menu-link\" href=\"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/dshw\/swpl\/fw\/food-waste-reduction-plan\/\">Reduction Plan<\/a><\/li><li class=\"mega-menu-item mega-menu-item-type-post_type mega-menu-item-object-page mega-menu-item-1857\" id=\"mega-menu-item-1857\"><a class=\"mega-menu-link\" href=\"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/dshw\/swpl\/fw\/flyers\/\">Flyers<\/a><\/li><li class=\"mega-menu-item mega-menu-item-type-post_type mega-menu-item-object-page mega-menu-item-5150\" id=\"mega-menu-item-5150\"><a class=\"mega-menu-link\" href=\"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/dshw\/swpl\/fw\/food-waste-recycling-rules\/\">Food Waste Recycling Rules<\/a><\/li><li class=\"mega-menu-item mega-menu-item-type-post_type mega-menu-item-object-page mega-menu-item-1855\" id=\"mega-menu-item-1855\"><a class=\"mega-menu-link\" href=\"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/dshw\/swpl\/fw\/resources\/\">Resources<\/a><\/li><li class=\"mega-menu-item mega-menu-item-type-custom mega-menu-item-object-custom mega-menu-item-has-children mega-align-bottom-left mega-menu-flyout mega-menu-item-2853\" id=\"mega-menu-item-2853\"><a class=\"mega-menu-link\" href=\"#\" aria-expanded=\"false\" aria-controls=\"mega-sub-menu-2853\">Topics<span class=\"mega-indicator\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/span><\/a>\n<ul class=\"mega-sub-menu\" id='mega-sub-menu-2853'>\n<li class=\"mega-menu-item mega-menu-item-type-post_type mega-menu-item-object-page mega-menu-item-7293\" id=\"mega-menu-item-7293\"><a class=\"mega-menu-link\" href=\"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/dshw\/swpl\/fw\/issues\/\">Issue<\/a><\/li><li class=\"mega-menu-item mega-menu-item-type-post_type mega-menu-item-object-page mega-menu-item-7296\" id=\"mega-menu-item-7296\"><a class=\"mega-menu-link\" href=\"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/dshw\/swpl\/fw\/facts\/\">Facts<\/a><\/li><li class=\"mega-menu-item mega-menu-item-type-post_type mega-menu-item-object-page mega-menu-item-2854\" id=\"mega-menu-item-2854\"><a class=\"mega-menu-link\" href=\"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/dshw\/swpl\/fw\/donations\/\">Donations<\/a><\/li><li class=\"mega-menu-item mega-menu-item-type-post_type mega-menu-item-object-page mega-menu-item-2855\" id=\"mega-menu-item-2855\"><a class=\"mega-menu-link\" href=\"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/dshw\/swpl\/fw\/government\/\">Government<\/a><\/li><li class=\"mega-menu-item mega-menu-item-type-post_type mega-menu-item-object-page mega-menu-item-2856\" id=\"mega-menu-item-2856\"><a class=\"mega-menu-link\" href=\"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/dshw\/swpl\/fw\/procmanu\/\">Processing and Manufacturing<\/a><\/li><li class=\"mega-menu-item mega-menu-item-type-post_type mega-menu-item-object-page mega-menu-item-2858\" id=\"mega-menu-item-2858\"><a class=\"mega-menu-link\" href=\"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/dshw\/swpl\/fw\/restaurants\/\">Restaurants<\/a><\/li><li class=\"mega-menu-item mega-menu-item-type-post_type mega-menu-item-object-page mega-menu-item-2859\" id=\"mega-menu-item-2859\"><a class=\"mega-menu-link\" href=\"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/dshw\/swpl\/fw\/retail\/\">Retail<\/a><\/li><li class=\"mega-menu-item mega-menu-item-type-post_type mega-menu-item-object-page mega-menu-item-2857\" id=\"mega-menu-item-2857\"><a class=\"mega-menu-link\" href=\"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/dshw\/swpl\/fw\/residential\/\">Residential<\/a><\/li><li class=\"mega-menu-item mega-menu-item-type-post_type mega-menu-item-object-page mega-menu-item-2860\" id=\"mega-menu-item-2860\"><a class=\"mega-menu-link\" href=\"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/dshw\/swpl\/fw\/schools\/\">Schools<\/a><\/li><\/ul>\n<\/li><li class=\"mega-menu-item mega-menu-item-type-post_type mega-menu-item-object-page mega-menu-item-1854\" id=\"mega-menu-item-1854\"><a class=\"mega-menu-link\" href=\"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/dshw\/swpl\/fw\/contact\/\">Contact<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/div>[\/vc_column_text][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=&#8221;1\/2&#8243;][vc_column_text css=&#8221;&#8221;]On December 21, 2023, Governor Murphy signed the\u00a0<a title=\"https:\/\/pub.njleg.state.nj.us\/Bills\/2022\/PL23\/193_.HTM\" href=\"https:\/\/pub.njleg.state.nj.us\/Bills\/2022\/PL23\/193_.HTM\" data-auth=\"NotApplicable\" data-linkindex=\"5\" data-ogsc=\"\">School Food Waste Recycling Law<\/a>\u00a0into effect.\u00a0 The law allows schools to collect food waste for on-site recycling through in-vessel composting and anaerobic digestion systems (AD) and also allows schools without on-site in-vessel composting and AD systems to transfer collected food waste to another school equipped with such systems. For additional information, please see the guidance document and notification form below.<\/p>\n<p><span data-ogsc=\"rgb(70, 120, 134)\">Notes:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li class=\"x_x_MsoListParagraph\"><span data-olk-copy-source=\"MessageBody\">The notification form is only applicable to schools that accept food waste from other schools. <\/span><\/li>\n<li class=\"x_x_MsoListParagraph\">Schools generating an average projected volume of 52 tons of food waste or more per year and are located within 25 road miles of an <a title=\"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/dshw\/swpl\/fw\/food-waste-recycling-rules\/lafwrf\/\" href=\"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/dshw\/swpl\/fw\/food-waste-recycling-rules\/lafwrf\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-auth=\"NotApplicable\" data-linkindex=\"1\" data-ogsc=\"\">authorized food waste recycling facility<\/a> are not subject to this law, but are subject to the Food Waste Recycling rules (<a title=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/rules\/rules\/njac7_26k.pdf\" href=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/rules\/rules\/njac7_26k.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-auth=\"NotApplicable\" data-linkindex=\"2\" data-ogsc=\"\">N.J.A.C. 7:26K<\/a> <i class=\"fas fa-file-pdf text-danger\" title=\"Adobe Acrobat PDF file\"><\/i>) which implement the Food Waste Recycling and Food Waste-to-Energy Production Law (<a title=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/dshw\/pl_2020_c24_fw.pdf\" href=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/dshw\/pl_2020_c24_fw.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-auth=\"NotApplicable\" data-linkindex=\"3\" data-ogsc=\"\">N.J.S.A. 13:1E-99.122 <i data-ogsc=\"\">et seq.<\/i><\/a> <i class=\"fas fa-file-pdf text-danger\" title=\"Adobe Acrobat PDF file\"><\/i>).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][info-box-shortcode icon=&#8221;fa fa-regular fa-file-pdf&#8221; buttontitle=&#8221;School Food Waste In-Vessel Composting and Anaerobic Digestion Guidance Document: developed pursuant to N.J.S.A. 13:1E-99.115a&#8221; buttonlink=&#8221;\/wp-content\/uploads\/dshw\/2025-school-food-waste-guidance-doc-without-form.pdf&#8221; targetlink=&#8221;true&#8221;][\/info-box-shortcode][vc_empty_space][info-box-shortcode icon=&#8221;fa fa-solid fa-up-right-from-square&#8221; buttontitle=&#8221;School Food Waste In-Vessel Composting and Anaerobic Digestion Notification Form&#8221; buttonlink=&#8221;https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/dshw\/swpl\/fw\/schools\/school-food-waste-form\/&#8221; targetlink=&#8221;true&#8221;][\/info-box-shortcode][vc_empty_space][vc_column_text css=&#8221;&#8221;]K-12 schools and higher education institutions are important in helping New Jersey meet its goal of reducing food waste 50% by 2030. While schools play a significant role in reducing, recovering and recycling food waste they also have an opportunity to teach future generations the importance of our food, where it comes from, and how we can use it best. The Department of Environmental Protection has a set of guidelines to help K-12 schools and higher education institutions reduce, recover, and recycle food waste. You can find the School Food Waste Guidelines and related materials and resources below:[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space][info-box-shortcode icon=&#8221;far fa-file-pdf&#8221; buttontitle=&#8221;School Food Waste Guidelines&#8221; buttonlink=&#8221;\/wp-content\/uploads\/sustainability\/school-food-waste-guidelines\/school_food_waste_guidelines_february_2024.pdf&#8221; targetlink=&#8221;true&#8221;][\/info-box-shortcode][vc_empty_space][vc_column_text css=&#8221;&#8221;]<\/p>\n<p>Additionally, Sustainable Jersey for Schools, in collaboration with Rutgers Cooperative Extension, has developed a toolkit for PreK-12 Schools to Reduce, Recover &amp; Recycle Food Waste with funding provided by the DEP\u2019s Division of Sustainable Waste Management. The toolkit is available below:[\/vc_column_text][info-box-shortcode icon=&#8221;far fa-file-pdf&#8221; buttontitle=&#8221;Toolkit&#8221; buttonlink=&#8221;https:\/\/www.sustainablejerseyschools.com\/fileadmin\/media\/Grants_and_Resources\/Resources\/Food_Waste_Toolkit\/SJS_PreK-12_Food_Waste_Toolkit.pdf&#8221; targetlink=&#8221;true&#8221;][\/info-box-shortcode][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=&#8221;1\/2&#8243;][vc_single_image image=&#8221;1762&#8243; img_size=&#8221;full&#8221; alignment=&#8221;right&#8221; onclick=&#8221;img_link_large&#8221; css=&#8221;&#8221;][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;50px&#8221;][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space][breadcrumb-shortcode][vc_column_text css=&#8221;&#8221;] Food Waste &#8211; Schools [\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text][\/vc_column_text][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=&#8221;1\/2&#8243;][vc_column_text css=&#8221;&#8221;]On December 21, 2023, Governor Murphy signed the\u00a0School Food Waste Recycling Law\u00a0into effect.\u00a0 The law allows schools to collect food waste for on-site recycling through in-vessel composting and anaerobic digestion systems (AD) and also allows schools without on-site in-vessel composting and AD systems to transfer collected food [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":133,"featured_media":0,"parent":1667,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"fullwidth.php","meta":{"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"class_list":["post-1761","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>NJDEP| Division of Sustainable Waste Management | Food Waste - Schools<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"NJDEP| Division of Sustainable Waste Management | Food Waste - Schools | Page Description\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/dshw\/swpl\/fw\/schools\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"NJDEP| Division of Sustainable Waste Management | Food Waste - Schools\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"NJDEP| Division of Sustainable Waste Management | Food Waste - Schools | Page Description\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/dshw\/swpl\/fw\/schools\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Division of Sustainable Waste Management\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-12-05T15:55:45+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/deptest.nj.gov\\\/dshw\\\/swpl\\\/fw\\\/schools\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/deptest.nj.gov\\\/dshw\\\/swpl\\\/fw\\\/schools\\\/\",\"name\":\"NJDEP| Division of Sustainable Waste Management | Food Waste - Schools\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/deptest.nj.gov\\\/dshw\\\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2024-08-13T15:25:52+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-12-05T15:55:45+00:00\",\"description\":\"NJDEP| Division of Sustainable Waste Management | Food Waste - Schools | Page Description\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/deptest.nj.gov\\\/dshw\\\/swpl\\\/fw\\\/schools\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/deptest.nj.gov\\\/dshw\\\/swpl\\\/fw\\\/schools\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/deptest.nj.gov\\\/dshw\\\/swpl\\\/fw\\\/schools\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Solid Waste Planning and Licensing\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/deptest.nj.gov\\\/dshw\\\/swpl\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Food Waste\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/deptest.nj.gov\\\/dshw\\\/swpl\\\/fw\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":3,\"name\":\"Food Waste &#8211; 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