Winston-Salem. N.C. (November 15, 2022) — Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest NC announced a partnership with Google.org, Google’s philanthropic arm, and Feeding America® to immediately support delivery of meals to Northwest North Carolinians in need and build long term technology solutions to scale Second Harvest’s impact across the communities it serves.
This announcement is part of a larger initiative from Google.org and Feeding America to help provide 50 million meals* to communities across the United States.
Today, 34 million Americans, including 9 million children, are facing food insecurity. Among Feeding America network food banks, 90% report an increased or sustained need over the last month, including Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest NC, which is the major provider of food for more than 500 local food assistance agencies serving communities across 18 counites – from Boone to Burlington.
Even as many families are struggling to pay for basic expenses of food, shelter, healthcare, and childcare, food banks also face mounting challenges as food donations decline and costs rise for freight, food purchase, and every other aspect of operations. Second Harvest has seen this need first-hand, with the number of people requesting food assistance increasing each month since January of this year.
“We are especially appreciative that this significant, two-year investment from Google through Feeding America, of which we are part, will support Second Harvest as we seek to address both the significant, immediate needs of area families and further invest in technologies to enhance our effectiveness to hlp our region thrive,” said Eric Aft, CEO, Second Harvest Food Bank.
Nationally, Google sees a spike in searches for food support every November, but more than ever before, Americans are making searches around “food” and “prices” in 2022. They are also searching “how to give back” more than ever, with searches for “where to donate food near me” skyrocketing 850% over the past five years.
“Addressing food insecurity requires a sustained and coordinated approach. We’re proud to partner with Feeding America to deliver over 50 million meals to people in need, and to work with them to strengthen their technology infrastructure,” said Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google and Alphabet. “We’re also making our products, like Search and Maps, more helpful to people searching for resources or ways to give back.”
Each and every day, Second Harvest relies on a community of supporters whose gifts of time, food, and funds and willingness to raise their voices drives the organization’s success in its mission and work to build food secure, healthy communities for all.
For more information, visit https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/feeding-america-and-googleorg-partner-to-deliver-50-million-meals-301673650.html.
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