Second Harvest of Silicon Valley is not affected by the current power outage and will continue to distribute food throughout Santa Clara and San Mateo counties as normal. We remain in close contact with our partner agencies who assist with our food distributions to determine if any of those sites have been affected. If any are unable to distribute food, we will work with them to reschedule or direct the public to another site in the area. Clients can contact our multilingual Food Connection Hotline for up-to-date information at 1-800-984-3663.
Frequently Asked Questions:
My neighborhood is impacted by the power outage. Can I donate food from my refrigerator or freezer to Second Harvest?
Safe food handling practices are of the utmost importance at Second Harvest. Because we cannot guarantee the general public adheres to proper temperature control and food handling guidelines, we are unable to accept donations from personal refrigerators and freezers at this time. Nonperishable food donations are accepted.
What can I do to help?
Individuals, corporations and organizations can help to ensure that anyone who needs a healthy meal can get one all year long by donating funds to Second Harvest. Nonperishable food donations can also be brought to one of Second Harvest’s three facilities or placed in Second Harvest’s food donation barrels at grocery stores, libraries, community centers and other sites throughout the community. Please refer to our most-needed foods list under the Donate section on shfb.org.
What happens if the power outage does impact Second Harvest?
Second Harvest of Silicon Valley is part of a coordinated emergency response network and is ready for urgent situations like this. While our facilities are not currently impacted by this power shutdown, we do have back-up generators at all three of our warehouses – two in San Jose and one in San Carlos – so we can continue to operate and provide food to members of the community who need it.
How will Second Harvest distribute food during the outage?
Second Harvest will continue to provide food to the public as it normally does. We do not distribute food to the public directly from our three warehouses – we distribute food through our network of 310 partner organizations at 1,000 sites in Santa Clara and San Mateo counties. If any of those partner sites are unable to support their food distributions during this period, we will work with them to reschedule another distribution as soon as possible or direct people to other sites in the area that are operational.
If a partner site is impacted during the outage, how will people get food?
It’s important for the public to know that Second Harvest will continue to support them throughout the shutdown. We remain in close contact with our 310 partner agencies who assist with our food distributions to determine if any of those sites have been affected. If any partners are unable to distribute food, we will direct the public to another distribution site in the area. Our Food Connection Hotline will have up-to-date information and can direct people to another site in the area. Support is available in in English, Spanish, Vietnamese, Cantonese, Mandarin and Tagalog by calling 1-800-984-3663.