Using the ReFED Insights Engine to Help Use Food Well in Washington

The State of Washington's Department of Ecology used ReFED’s Roadmap to 2030 and Insights Engine to provide the economic rationale and analysis behind its statewide Use Food Well Washington Plan. The plan includes 30 recommendations for food waste solutions adoption and the recommendations’ corresponding economic implications. Using ReFED data, Washington was able to estimate that the 30 recommendations would potentially garner net benefits of more than $1 billion annually, from elements such as reduced disposal costs, development of new markets and waste uses, and avoided purchases of additional food. Importantly, their analysis found that for every $1 invested in a given recommendation, nearly $18 in benefits would be created – and that full implementation of all 30 recommendations would create $4 in benefits for every $1 spent. 

Additionally, ReFED’s Roadmap to 2030 was used to provide the rationale behind the Use Food Well Washington Plan’s recommendations for Washington to support the national date labeling standard, improve donation transportation, increase state grant funding for food waste reduction, and to support Washington-specific waste tracking and analytics. 

Washington also reported that over time their solution recommendations could divert more than one million tons of food waste across the state each year, a significant portion of which would be edible food diverted to hunger relief or new markets.

ReFED launched its Insights Engine and accompanying Roadmap to 2030 in early 2021 with the goal of providing a robust suite of resources that stakeholders throughout the food system can use to inform their food waste reduction efforts. Following the launch, we have received feedback from hundreds of individuals and entities citing examples of the tools’ usefulness and impact.