FOOD WASTE STUDY

SAP
State of South Carolina Solicitation: 5400029793
Date Issued: 05/06/2026
Procurement Officer: KENESHA ATKINSON
Request for Quote E-Mail Address: Kenesha.Atkinson@des.sc.gov
Mailing Address: SC Dept. of Environmental Services
Attn: Procurement
2600 Bull Street
Columbia SC 29201-2104
DESCRIPTION: SCDES Food Waste Study
USING GOVERNMENTAL UNIT: SC Department of Environmental Services
SUBMIT YOUR OFFER ON-LINE AT THE FOLLOWING URL: http://www.procurement.sc.gov
SUBMIT OFFER BY (Opening Date/Time): 05/20/2026 12:00 PM ET (See "Deadline For Submission Of Offer" provision)
SUBMIT OFFER TO: Kenesha.Atkinson@des.sc.gov
Email subject line: SCDES Food Waste Study 5400029793
CONFERENCE TYPE: Not Applicable LOCATION: Not Applicable
DATE & TIME:
(As appropriate, see "Conferences - Pre-Bid/Proposal" & "Site Visit" provisions)
You must submit a signed copy of this form with Your Offer. By signing, You agree to be bound by the terms of the
Solicitation. You agree to hold Your Offer open for a minimum of thirty (30) calendar days after the Opening Date. (See
"Signing Your Offer" provision.)
NAME OF OFFEROR Any award issued will be issued to, and the contract will be formed with,
the entity identified as the Offeror. The entity named as the offeror must be
a single and distinct legal entity. Do not use the name of a branch office or
a division of a larger entity if the branch or division is not a separate legal
(full legal name of business submitting the offer) entity, i.e., a separate corporation, partnership, sole proprietorship, etc.
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COVER PAGE - PAPER ONLY (MAR. 2015)
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SSAAPP
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Table of Contents
ACQUIRE SERVICES (JAN 2006) ......................................................................................................................................... 4
Scope of Work .......................................................................................................................................................................... 4
VIII. BIDDING SCHEDULE / PRICE-BUSINESS PROPOSAL ........................................................................................... 7
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ACQUIRE SERVICES (JAN 2006)
The purpose of this solicitation is to acquire services complying with the enclosed description and/or specifications and
conditions. [01-1010-1]
The S.C. Department of Environmental Services (SCDES) is seeking bids to conduct a comprehensive study of current
food waste generation, composition, and management practices to identify opportunities for waste reduction, diversion, and
cost savings.
Scope of Work
The S.C. Department of Environmental Services (SCDES) is seeking bids to conduct a comprehensive study of current
food waste generation, composition, and management practices to identify opportunities for waste reduction, diversion, and
cost savings.
In a just completed statewide municipal solid waste (MSW) characterization study funded by a U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) grant, food waste is the No.1 item and accounts for more than 25 percent of all waste being
disposed of in South Carolina's landfills. In addition, SCDES estimates that less than 2 percent of the unwanted food
thrown away is recovered through composting.
Overall, these numbers combined to have a substantial negative impact on landfill capacity (i.e., life expectancy) in South
Carolina. Reduced landfill capacity will increase financial burdens on local governments, businesses, and residents because
of higher disposal costs or the construction of another landfill.
* When a landfill closes, waste may have to be hauled over longer distances to other permitted facilities, increasing
transportation costs. In addition, with fewer landfills, existing landfills gain market power and may increase
tipping fees.
* New landfills are highly expensive to build, costing millions of dollars.
Disposal also results in missed economic and environmental opportunities. Diverting food waste to compost or anaerobic
digestion creates jobs, reduces disposal costs, and adds revenue streams from the sale of compost and soil amendments.
Local composting programs can be part of a circular economy, keeping resources and revenues at home.
SCDES introduced one of the nation's first food waste reduction outreach campaigns on July 13, 2016. Don't Waste Food
SC (DWFSC) is a collaborative outreach campaign that brings together stakeholders from the public and private sectors to
share knowledge, coordinate resources, and work together to reduce wasted food in South Carolina. The goals of the
campaign are to:
* Increase the awareness of the economic, environmental, and social impacts of wasted food;
* Inspire individuals, restaurants, businesses, schools, colleges/universities, and organizations to take action to
reduce food waste through prevention and donation; and
* Cut South Carolina's wasted food in half by 2030.
SCDES believes the campaign - which centers on prevention and donation - has been successful but acknowledges the
difficulty in meaningful measurement.
Prevention of food waste and donation should be prioritized but alone cannot solve the issue. Recovery infrastructure is
essential. Currently, South Carolina has insufficient food waste recovery infrastructure. Only four counties (Beaufort,
Charleston, Greenville, and Horry) have programs that accept food waste - two of which (Beaufort and Horry) are pilot
programs. Nine colleges/universities have composting programs. Finally, South Carolina has only one private sector food
waste recycler.
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The lack of infrastructure helps explain the following numbers. Using EPA's disposal estimate, South Carolina generated
more than 932,000 tons of food waste in fiscal year (FY) 2025 (July 1, 2024 - June 30,2025). In the same FY, county
governments reported recycling 13,608.08 tons of unwanted food - resulting in a 1.43 percent recovery rate. In the past six
FYs, the state's recycling rate of food waste is 1.59 percent. See the table below.
Food Waste Recovered (Composted) from FY20 - FY25
FISCAL MSW DISPOSED FOOD WASTE FOOD WASTE RECYCLING
YEAR OF BY TONS DISPOSED OF RECYCLED RATE
BY TONS (COMPOSTED) BY
TONS
FY25 3,883,455 932,029 13,608.98 1.43
FY24 3,682,186 883,724 13,860.20 1.54
FY23 4,311,032 1,034,647 4,923.75 0.47
FY22 3,951,239 948,297 28,107.49 1.42
FY21 3,772,282 905,347 18,253.37 1.97
FY20 3,541,739 850,017 11,477.76 1.33
TOTAL 23,141,933 5,554,061 90,231.55 1.59
The goal of this study is to provide an informational foundation to identify realistic and actionable strategies that will result
in the reduction and sustainable management of food waste and other organics through prevention, donation and
composting. Diverting food waste from disposal and returning it to a circular economy through beneficial use will have a
positive economic impact on South Carolina's economy.
This project is funded by an EPA Solid Waste Infrastructure for Recycling (SWIFR) grant and fits seamlessly with EPA's
National Food Loss and Waste Reduction Goal to achieve a national goal of percent of a 50 percent recycling rate by 2030.
SCDES has adopted this goal. In addition, this project aligns with EPA's National Strategy for Reducing Food Loss and
Waste and Recycling Organics.
SPECIFICATIONS
The vendor will:
1. Meet with SCDES staff as needed. All meetings will be virtual.
2. Complete the Quality Assurance Project Plan (QAPP) before the start of the project. Because this project will be funded
by an EPA grant, it must adhere to EPA's data quality assurance protocols. Given that, a QAPP must be developed,
reviewed, and approved prior to the start of project execution/data collection.
3. Conduct two virtual meetings with key stakeholders to collect data and input essential for a successful study. SCDES and
the vendor will agree on the content and timing of the meetings.
4. Complete and deliver the final report to SCDES within 75 days of the QAPP approval.
5. The report will include:
5.1. An inventory of existing organics infrastructure in South Carolina and include an assessment of the capacity,
access, and constraints.
5.2. An evaluation of current statutory, regulatory, programmatic, and other issues that constrain or enable food
waste diversion.
5.3. A detailed analysis of current food waste generation, food waste generators, disposal, and recovery using the
MSW waste characterization study, solid waste annual report and other reports and information collected by
SCDES.
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5.4. Identification and recommendations to address generators of food waste such as restaurants, schools,
hospitals, and prisons.
5.5. Case studies and successful business models of composting and other potential recovery options.
5.6. A Diversion Gap Analysis. This will include a comparison of amount organics available to available
processing capacity and identify geographic, sectoral, and system gaps as well as priority opportunities.
5.7. A summary of the findings and all supporting documents such as charts, tables, forms, and questionnaires.
5.8. Recommendations to reduce food waste through prevention, donation, and diversion. The findings must be
coordinated into a phased, prioritized strategy with near-, mid-, and, and long-term actions supported by a
measurement and monitoring framework.
6. The vendor will complete a draft report that will be reviewed by SCDES within one week of submission. Once finished,
SCDES and the vendor will hold a virtual meeting for final review and discussion of the draft report.
Responsibilities of SCDES
SCDES will support the vendor to include:
* Provide generation, disposal and recovery data at the outset of the project including the S.C. Solid Waste
Management Annual Report (s), the MSW Characterization Study, and other reports as needed.
* Provide assistance with appropriate regulations including Regulation 61-107.4 Solid Waste Management:
Compost and Mulch Production from Land-clearing Debris, Yard Trimmings, and Organic Residuals.
* Help alert local government programs, markets and potential markets, and other key stakeholders about this study
and stakeholder meetings.
* Assist vendor in securing specific programs and other stakeholders as needed for this study and virtual meetings.
* Answer all questions within 24 hours.
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VIII. BIDDING SCHEDULE / PRICE-BUSINESS PROPOSAL
BIDDING SCHEDULE (NOV 2007)
Line Number Quantity Unit of Measure Unit Price Extended Price
0001 1.00 each
Product Catg.: 96132 - Environmental Impact Studies
Item Description: SC Food Waste Study
Internal Item Number: 1
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