5 percent of American 's leftovers can feed 4 million people for 1 day . Disposing of food waste costs the government $ 1 billion a year . Rotting food releases CO₂ , a more potent greenhouse gas than CO2 . This can be harnessed to produce clean energy for heat , light and fuel .
5 percent of American 's leftovers could feed 4 million people for 1 day . Disposing of food waste costs the U.S. $ 1 billion a year . Rotting food releases methane , a more potent greenhouse gas than CO2 . Methane can be harnessed to create clean energy for heat , light and fuel .