Our Work

Nobody should ever go hungry

At Second Harvest, we believe hunger is unacceptable. We provide food to an average of about 500,000 kids, families and seniors every month at drive-thru and walk-up sites across Santa Clara and San Mateo counties through our programs and an expansive network of nearly 400 nonprofit partners.

We provide food through the following programs and activities:

Grocery Programs

Our grocery programs provide free nutritious groceries and fresh produce to our neighbors who can’t afford healthy food. Volunteers distribute the food while adhering to social distancing protocols.

Food Connection helps people find free groceries and other food resources in their neighborhood. Multilingual staff provide referrals to local food programs and help people apply for CalFresh.

Grocery Programs

Community Partners

Our partner agencies program provides food to nearly 400 nonprofit agencies in Silicon Valley. These include faith-based organizations, schools, senior centers, community groups, soup kitchens, rehabilitation centers and shelters.

Community Partners

School and Summer Meals

Free and reduced price school meals are an important source of nutrition for kids and teens. Second Harvest is working with school districts and community partners to maximize the use of these meals.

During the summer, kids and teens lose access to school meals. Second Harvest is leading local efforts to increase the number of summer meal sites and make sure families know about them.

School and Summer Meals

CalFresh Outreach

In partnership with Santa Clara and San Mateo county social services agencies, we help applicants enroll in the CalFresh program. The program provides an EBT benefits card for use at participating grocery stores and farmers’ markets.

CalFresh Outreach

Advocacy

Second Harvest educates policymakers and stakeholders about the importance of strong programs and collaboration in addressing hunger and related health issues. We work with local, state and national organizations to advocate for legislation and policy changes that strengthen and improve the effectiveness of food and nutrition programs, and create systems change to end hunger.

Advocacy

Nutrition Education

We provide nutrition education through cooking demos, recipe cards, nutrition classes and food-safety training.

Nutrition Education