Vermont’s Food Waste Laws are Popular, But Vexing Issues Remain

New research on Vermont’s first-in-the-nation food waste law and single-use plastics ban identifies areas for improvement
A man dumps food scraps from a bucket into a larger composter.

Vermonters largely support laws on food scraps and single-use plastics, but some are confused about composting rules, and frustrated with the state’s inability to compost biodegradable containers and tableware. 

These takeaways are from the first research yet to tackle the state’s pioneering food waste laws—Act 148 (food scraps) and Act 69 (single-use plastics)—since coming into effect...

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An image of UVM food security researchers Meredith Niles (left), Emily Belarmino (center), and Farryl Bertmann (right).

COVID-19 Food Insecurity Hits Record Levels in Vermont

Food insecurity in Vermont has reached record levels during the COVID-19 pandemic, with nearly 30% of Vermonters experiencing food insecurity since March, new University of Vermont research finds.

With Thanksgiving approaching, the research is the most comprehensive study of COVID-19’s impacts on food security in the Green Mountain State to date.

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Orb weaver cows walking through a foggy early morning field

True to the Land

True or false: The stinkier the cheese, the better?

“I’d have to say false,” Andy Kehler ’93 says. “I love a lot of stinky cheeses, and some stinky cheeses can be really sweet and delicious, but some really taste like garbage.”

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