Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Food Donation Act 1996 in the United States; what plans they have, if any, to introduce similar legislation to reduce food waste and allow for “apparently wholesome food” to be donated to charities; and whether they have received any representations from charities about the case for such legislation.

There are no plans to introduce legislation in this area. The absence of such legislation has not been seen as a key barrier to redistributors when it comes to increasing the availability of surplus food. Legal protection for suppliers of food, including the charities and organisations distributing surplus food, already exists in the form of the Food Safety Act 1990’s ‘due diligence’ provision. This is designed to balance the protection of the consumer from defective food with the right of suppliers of food not to be convicted of an offence they have taken all reasonable care to avoid committing.