FAQ

Each year, Second Harvest Food Banks serves more than 134,000 different individuals in need through its partner agencies that provide emergency food assistance. More than third are children, many are seniors.

Children
Children are especially vulnerable to issues of hunger and poverty. Nearly 81,500 children across Northwest NC live in poverty. Research indicates that even mild under-nutrition experienced by young children during critical periods of growth may lead to reductions in physical growth and affect brain development.1

A child who is unequipped to learn because of hunger and poverty is more likely to be poor as an adult. As such, the existence of childhood hunger in the United States threatens future American prosperity.

Seniors
For older adults, adequate nutrition is particularly important for health because of their increased vulnerability to disease and conditions that may impair the ability to live at home independently. Inadequate diets may contribute to or exacerbate disease, quicken the advance of age-related degenerative diseases, and delay recovery from illnesses..2 Nearly 9,500 people (7%) served by Second Harvest Food Bank emergency assistance programs are age 65 or older.

Working Poor
The assumption is often made that those who struggle with hunger are unemployed. The truth is that greater and greater numbers of working North Carolinians struggle to feed their families. The average annual income in households served by Second Harvest Food Bank partner agencies that provide emergency food assistance is $10,560. More than one-third of these households have one or more adults working.

According to one of the most recent studies from the USDA, North Carolina is one of the few states that has an increasing rate of food insecurity – defined as the inability, because of financial constraints, to consistently obtain food of sufficient quantity or quality for an active and healthy life.3

Hunger is a significant problem year-round in every community across the United States, from bustling American cities to suburban hamlets to rural small towns. In 2004 alone, the U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates that 38.2 million people lived in food-insecure households, including 13.9 million children.

Truth be told, the numbers above are an underestimate the extent of the problem. They are based on outdated federal poverty guidelines that distort the true picture of indigence in our nation. Read more.

Why are people hungry in America?
While hunger is a widespread problem, it is unique in that it is truly a solvable problem. The resources exist. The United States is the largest and most efficient food producer in the world.

Strengthening and expanding the federal food safety net and working to plug holes in that food safety net at the state and local levels, and fostering effective collaborations between the public and private sectors to feed more low-income Americans are just a few actions that can make a tremendous difference.

Ultimately, ending hunger will take leadership and political will. And it will require that the public and private sector join in a determined partnership to address the economic, political and personal barriers that contribute to hunger.

What is the impact of hunger in our communities?
While hunger may be hidden, its effects are not, especially among our more vulnerable citizens, including children and older adults. For example, research indicates that even mild under-nutrition experienced by young children during critical periods of growth may lead to reductions in physical growth and affect brain development.

For youngsters whose natural abilities and talents are diminished, the cost is obvious. But the cost also extends to our nation in terms of higher rates of school failure, poor returns on educational investments and weakened workforce productivity when children reach the age of employment. Read more about the consequences of hunger in children.

For older adults, adequate nutrition is particularly important for health because of their increased vulnerability to disease and conditions that may impair the ability to live at home independently. Inadequate diets may contribute to or exacerbate disease, quicken the advance of age-related degenerative diseases, and delay recovery from illnesses. Read more about the consequences of hunger in older adults.

What is food banking?
Food Banking is a process whereby surplus and donated food and grocery products are solicited, collected, sorted, inspected, warehoused and distributed to non-profit agencies and faith-based organizations that feed the disadvantaged.

A food bank operates as a distribution center for warehousing and distributing prepared and perishable, dry, refrigerated and frozen food products. Food banks do not directly serve individuals in need, but rather supply food to hundreds of hunger-relief agencies, like food pantries and soup kitchens, and other non-profit organizations serving the needy, like low-income day cares.

“Food banking is a system that works,” comments Nan H. Griswold, Executive Director of the Second Harvest Food Bank. “It’s a very simple system. There’s food being wasted. We bring it into a warehouse, make sure it’s edible, and offer it to churches and organizations that are feeding the poor.”

The Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest NC is a member of America’s Second Harvest, The Nation's Food Bank Network of more than 210 food banks and food rescue organizations serving every state in the nation. Together the America’s Second Harvest network serves more than 50,000 charities that are dedicated to feeding the hungry and others in need.

Who does the Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest North Carolina serve?
The Second Harvest Food Bank is a supplemental source of food for a broad range of non-profit agencies and faith-based programs that provide emergency food assistance (emergency food pantries, soup kitchens, homeless shelters, rescue missions, battered women’s shelters) and/or on-site meals (group homes, low-income day care centers, Kids Cafes, congregate feeding programs for seniors and children).

Through its 380 plus partner agencies, the Second Harvest Food Bank reaches out to communities in 18 counties, acting as a safety net to stave off hunger by collecting and distributing nearly 9 million pounds of food and grocery products each year.

The counties in our service area are: Alamance, Alexander, Alleghany, Ashe, Caldwell, Caswell, Davidson, Davie, Forsyth, Guilford, Iredell, Randolph, Rockingham, Stokes, Surry, Watauga, Wilkes, and Yadkin.

How do agencies become partners of the Second Harvest Food Bank?
Any nonprofit, 501(c)(3) agencies and faith-based organizations in the service area of the Second Harvest Food Bank are eligible to apply. Interested agencies must complete an application packet and receive a monitoring visit from an agency relations staff member. Thereafter, partner agencies are monitored every 18 months to ensure they are meeting the standards and policies of the Second Harvest Food Bank. For more information, visit the Agencies section of this Web site.

How do partner agencies get the food?
With the exception the Rural Delivery Program, we operate on a self-serve basis. Agencies may come to the Second Harvest Food Bank as frequently as twice a week to pick up food.

Our Rural Delivery Program serves agencies in Alamance, Alexander, Ashe, Alleghany, Caldwell, Caswell, Randolph, Rockingham, Stokes, Surry, Wilkes and Watauga counties. Agencies in these outlying areas can order food and grocery products for delivery every other week via Food Bank trucks to a central locations in each county.

Do partner agencies pay for the food they receive?
Partner agencies are not charged for the food they receive from our food bank. They do, however, pay a Shared Handling Fee based on the poundage of product they receive (in most cases, 18 cents per pound). The Shared Handling Fee helps offset our costs for soliciting, collecting, transporting, storing, inspecting, and distributing donations. We also oversee and distribute food from several state and federal programs such as TEFAP (Temporary Emergency Family Assistance Program), and SNAP (State Nutrition Assistance Program). Agencies that participate in these programs pay no Shared Handling Fee for this food.

We estimate that our partner agencies save more than $12 million a year by using the Second Harvest Food Bank, had they otherwise had to purchase the food at retail or wholesale cost.*

*The value of food products is based on the national wholesale value of one pound food as determined by an annual study performed by KPMG LLP for America’s Second Harvest.

Where does the food come from?
We acquire surplus food (i.e., mislabeled, overproduced, test market, short code dates) and grocery products from national donors through America’s Second Harvest, The Nation's Food Bank Network of more than 210 food banks and food rescue organizations; the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA); a State Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) grant; local food manufacturers and distributors; local restaurants, caterers and food service organizations; local grocery stores and their salvage (damaged product) reclamation centers; a Community Garden and community foods drives. In 1994, the Second Harvest Food Bank began “Second Helpings,” a program that rescues leftover prepared foods from restaurants, caterers and food service organizations in Forsyth County and delivers it that same day to partner agencies in the area that provide on-site feeding programs, such as Samaritan Ministries Soup Kitchen. A similar program, “Cook a Pan for the Hungry,” works in much the same way.

What type of donated food can the Second Harvest Food Bank accept?
We can accept anything found in a grocery store, from whole pallets of food to individual donations. We can even handle frozen and refrigerated products or fresh produce. Some specific examples of useful items are: canned meats, like tuna and ham; canned fruits, vegetables, soups and stews; Hamburger and Tuna Helper; boxed macaroni and cheese, rice, pasta, dry cereal and granola/cereal bars. We can also accept general grocery items, such as diapers, soap/shampoo, cleaning supplies, and paper products like toilet paper and paper towels.

We cannot accept home canned or jarred items, open items or items not in their original packaging due to Health Department regulations.

Why are food drives so important to the Food Bank?
Our organization relies heavily upon donations from the food industry, yet the availability of healthy canned food items from these sources varies a great deal. At the same time, these staple food items – canned meats, vegetables, fruits and so on – are what many of our partner agencies need most. Food drives fill an important gap and help ensure we have a variety of these essential products in inventory.

What is America’s Second Harvest and why is it important locally?
America’s Second Harvest is the nation's food bank network and the largest hunger-relief organization in the nation. Through its network of more than 210 member food banks and food-rescue organizations, including the Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest NC, it serves 50,000 local charitable agencies across the country. As a member organization, we have access to food from national food partners to feed the hungry in our area.

How is the Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest NC funded?
Our partner agencies share in operating costs (18 cents per pound) for product received. This handling fee covers approximately 45% of our operating expenses. To keep our freezers freezing, our trucks gassed and the food moving to our partner agency programs, we also work collaboratively with the business community and non-profit, faith-based, civic and service organizations, drawing upon the abundance of these groups for volunteers, food and funding.

We also receive financial support from the United Way of Forsyth County, foundations, individuals, an allocation from the General Assembly to purchase staple food items, reimbursement fees for distributing USDA TEFAP (The Emergency Food Assistance Program) commodities and special events and promotions, including our annual Empty Bowls and Golf Tournament fundraisers, The Pampered Chef “Round Up from the Heart” Campaign, and others. The Second Harvest Food Bank is a good steward of the products and funds it collects – for every $1donated, the Second Harvest Food Bank can distribute $12 wholesale value of food.

What is the size/scope of the Second Harvest Food Bank operation?
Within one year of opening its doors in 1982, the Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest NC (known then as the Food Bank of Northwest North Carolina) moved from its 1,800 square-foot home on Polo Road to a 4,500 square-foot warehouse next door, and then on to a 9,700 square-foot warehouse on Liberty Street. In 1991, a new 34,000 square-foot warehouse was constructed at 3655 Reed Street after completion of a $1.37 million capital campaign. Today, the expanded 65,000 square-foot facility includes a 45,000-square-foot warehouse, 44,000-cubic feet of freezer space and 41,000-cubic feet of cooler space. The expansion project was completed in the late summer of 2003 after a $2 million capital campaign.

How long has the Second Harvest Food Bank been operating?
The Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest NC opened its doors in 1982, serving 10 agencies and an estimated 3752 clients. We became a certified member of America’s Second Harvest network in 1985. Today we serve more than 380 partner agencies that annually serve more than 134,000 different clients.

How can I help the Second Harvest Food Bank?
There are many ways you can share your abundance to help the Second Harvest Food Bank feed the hungry. You can donate money. You can donate food. You can volunteer. And you can take political action by writing to your elected officials. We thank you in advance for helping in any way that you can.

Contact Us	Directions	Hours of Operation	Partner Agencies