Organisations that rescue wasted food to feed the needy are being given hundreds of thousands of dollars in Federal Government funding to reduce their energy costs and increase their storage capacity.

Food waste in figures More than 4 million tonnes of food is wasted each year — enough to feed 60 million people

More than 4 million tonnes of food is wasted each year — enough to feed 60 million people It costs the economy $20 billion

It costs the economy $20 billion Charity groups are turning away 43,000 people seeking help each month

The $1.2 million funding injection follows the ABC's War on Waste series, which drew attention to the staggering amount of rubbish Australia produces each year and, in particular, the volume of food that ends up in landfill.

Australian households, cafes and restaurants throw out more than 4 million tonnes of food each year — enough to feed 60 million people — at a cost to the economy of about $20 billion.

At the same time, charities are turning away more than 43,000 Australians each month who are in need of help, Federal Energy Minister Josh Frydenberg said.

Mr Frydenberg said the Government was committed to supporting those "on the frontline" of food rescue and has announced Foodbank Australia, Fareshare, SecondBite and Oz Harvest would receive grants to help them reduce their energy costs and in turn, increase their capacity to store food.

"They're designed to boost energy efficiency and get food to those who need it most," he said.

"It could be new solar panels, or refrigerated vans or helping these groups expand their refrigerated capacity."

The country's largest food rescue organisation, Foodbank, distributes 35 million kilograms of food from farmers, retailers and manufacturers to charities each year.

Chief executive Brianna Casey said the funding would enable the organisation to buy new cool rooms and install more solar panels on its distribution centres, slashing its "massive" power bills.

"This funding will help us reduce input costs, which means we can redirect that money and address our transport and logistics challenges," she said.

While Ms Casey has welcomed the money, she said it was vital the Government developed a "food insecurity agenda" to address the growing "crisis", which is leaving one in six Australians without enough food on their plates.