Food Banking At-A-Glance

Operating from a 65,000 square-foot warehouse facility and with support from many generous food and financial donors and the helping hands of some 2000 volunteers, Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest NC serves a critical role in hunger-relief efforts for the region, providing donated food to more than 400 non-profit partner agencies that serve people at risk of hunger and others in need from Boone to Burlington.

What is Food Banking?
Food Banking is a process whereby salvaged (edible but not saleable) and other donated food and grocery products are solicited, collected, sorted, inspected, warehoused and distributed to non-profit agencies and faith-based organizations that feed hungry people in our community and others in need. Food banking began 30 years ago as a way to prevent perfectly edible food from ending up in a dump somewhere. Today, Second Harvest Food Bank obtains food from many different sources, yet remains focused on helping to create hunger-free communities.

We do not distribute food to individuals directly, but rather supply food to hundreds of hunger-relief agencies, like food pantries and soup kitchens, and other non-profit organizations serving the needy, such as low-income day cares. (Think United Way of Food). Many nonprofit agencies rely on food banks for most or all of the food they distribute. However, since donations to our organization are not entirely predictable, we think of organization as supplemental source of food for our partner agencies.

Across our 18-county service area, 1 out of every 14 residents seeks and receives emergency food assistance from our partner agencies that provide these services. By and large, those receiving emergency food assistance are working poor families with children and older adults and disabled individuals living on fixed incomes.

Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest NC is a member of Feeding America (formerly named America's Second Harvest), a collaborative and coordinated network of more than 200 food banks united nationally and operating locally, serving every community in the nation to get food to those who need it. Collectively, we distribute more than 2 billion pounds of food each year to 50,000 non-profit organizations serving those in need across the nation.

What types of non-profit programs does Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest North Carolina serve?
Second Harvest Food Bank is a source of food for a broad range of more than 400 non-profit organization 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). Beyond food, we offer our partner agencies technical assistance in meeting food distribution program criteria and education and networking opportunities.

What Are Second Harvest Food Bank's Other Programs? Second Harvest Food Bank's food distribution program is the foundation for all our other programs, including two that aim to address childhood hunger - KidsCafes and BackPack Programs, and Traid Community Kitchen produces ready-to-heat meals in bags from highly perishable donations while serving as a culinary job training program for underemployed and unemployed individuals. We also work with other hunger-relief organizations and partners to advocate for the rights of hungry people and raise awareness of hunger in our communities. As a member of NC VOAD (Volunteer Organizations Assisting in Disaster), we also provide food assistance when disaster strikes.

Where Does the Food Come From? Food donations to Second Harvest Food Bank come from a variety of sources. Nearly 9 million pounds of food, much of which might otherwise have gone to waste, is collected each year from our donors for distribution to our partner agencies including:

• National donor relationships coordinated by Feeding America (formerly named America's Second Harvest)
• The NC General Assembly - allocates funds for food purchase to the seven North Carolina America's Second Harvest members to help purchase staple food items that generally are not donated through other sources
• The N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (government commodities)
• Local food manufacturers, distributors, processors and farmers
• Local grocery stores and their reclamation centers
• Local caterers, restaurants and food service organzations
• Gleaning organzations like the Society of St. Andrew
• A community garden
• Community food drives
• Individual donations

How Can I get Involved?

Donate FUNDS. For every $1 you donate the Second Harvest Food Bank can distribute $12 worth of food to help feed hungry people.

Donate FOOD. Every can helps! We rely on the generosity of many generous donors for the food we distribute, including community food drives conducted by individuals and organizations; donations through our national organization - Feeding America; the North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services USDA Commodity Program; a State Nutrition Assistance grant; local food manufacturers, distributors, processors and farmers; local grocery stores and their Reclamation Centers; a Community Garden; and local restaurants, caterers and food service organizations.

VOLUNTEER. Volunteers are making a difference every day at the Second Harvest Food Bank. More than 2,000 volunteers annually donate their time, talents and energy to help sort, package and label food;, grade eggs; provide office support, tutor at Kids Cafes; serve on our board and help with special events.

ADVOCATE. Stay abreast of current hunger-related legislation. Register at www.hungeractioncenter.org, sponsored by America's Second Harvest, The Nation's Food Bank Network. You'll learn about current hunger-related legislation and can get contact information for YOUR national and state legislators with the click of a button. This site also offers a way for you to quickly and easily MAKE YOUR VOICE COUNT by signing on to letters about current hunger-related legislation. Remember, your voice counts!