Leah Douglas

(Reuters) – More than one third of the food that is produced in America is thrown away, according to a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency report. It said that the country is far behind its 2015 target to cut waste by half by 2030.

The EPA stated that food waste can be a huge threat to the climate and cause billions in losses.

“As the United States strives to meet the Paris Agreement targets to limit the increase in global temperature to 1.5 degrees above pre-industrial levels, changes to the food system are essential,” the EPA said in its report, published Dec. 1.

“Even if fossil fuel emissions were halted, current trends in the food system would prevent the achievement of this goal.”

Research estimates that the U.S. loses between 73 and 152 million tons of food each year. That’s enough calories for more than 150,000,000 people each year. It also represents nearly four-fifths of America’s food insecurity.

According to the report, the U.S. Department of Agriculture had announced in 2015 a shared goal of reducing food waste by 50% from a baseline of 2010. This was partly through partnerships with community and private sectors. But, there has been no significant progress.”

Although the initiative included conference presentations and working groups, it did not offer any mandates to the private sector.

2010 saw 31% food waste.

The federal government has so far underinvested in the issue, said Shannon Kenny, senior advisor on food loss and waste at EPA’s Office of Research and Development and a lead author on the report. “We’ve been operating on a shoestring.”

Public awareness campaigns would be a key component of the government’s strategy to cut food waste. Kenny stated that she hopes new infrastructure investments or the Build Back Better Act will help.