Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina

What Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina does

Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit food bank founded in 1981 and headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, operating as a member of the national Feeding America network. The organization distributes nearly 90 million pounds of food and household items annually across 24 counties (14 in North Carolina and 10 in South Carolina) through a network of more than 950 partner agencies, including emergency pantries, soup kitchens, senior programs, shelters, and low-income daycares. It also operates direct-distribution programs such as the School Mobile Pantry, the Backpack Program (520,000+ backpacks annually), Kids Café, Senior Box/CSFP, Feeding Veterans, Feeding Pets, and Disaster Relief, and provides SNAP application assistance to food-insecure individuals.

Its business model is donation-based and non-commercial, with no product pricing. Revenue and program support derive from individual donations, corporate food donations (approximately 73% of distributed items originate from food and retail industry partners including Walmart, Sam's Club, Food Lion, Harris Teeter, Publix, and Perdue), corporate sponsorships, signature fundraising events (Chef's Best, Sort-A-Rama, Empty Bowls), and foundation grants. Volunteer labor provides an estimated $10.6 million in annual in-kind value, with 93,727 volunteers contributing 336,302 hours at $31.68/hour.

The technology stack is limited to operational nonprofit SaaS tools: CERVIS for volunteer scheduling, OneCause for peer-to-peer fundraising, and Constant Contact for email outreach. The organization maintains a small paid staff (11-50 employees) supplemented by a large volunteer base, and is led by CEO Kay Carter. It holds BBB accreditation, AIB food safety certification, Charity Navigator rating, and GuideStar Platinum Seal, and recently received a multi-year commitment of over $10 million from the Tepper Foundation to all Carolinas food banks.

Name

Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina

Legal name

Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina

Website

https://secondharvestmetrolina.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1981

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit food bank distributing nearly 90 million pounds of food annually across 24 counties in North and South Carolina through 950+ partner agencies, serving children, seniors, families, veterans, and pets experiencing food insecurity.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Charlotte

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Individual Donations: Monetary donations from individuals to support food purchasing and distribution operations
2. Corporate Food Donations: Food and retail industry partners donate unopened dry, shelf-stable, refrigerated and frozen food items; fresh produce; personal care and cleaning products; accounting for 80% of all items distributed
3. Volunteer Labor: Volunteers provide 336,302 hours of labor valued at $31.68 per hour, equating to over $10.6 million in savings
4. Event Fundraising: Revenue from signature events like Chef's Best, Sort-A-Rama, and Empty Bowls

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina solicits, stores, and distributes food and household items across 24 counties in North and South Carolina through a network of 950+ partner agencies and direct programs. It runs targeted feeding programs for children, seniors, families, veterans, and pets, plus disaster relief, SNAP application assistance, and signature fundraising events. Operations center on donated food, monetary donations, grants, and volunteer labor rather than paid product sales.

Product overview

Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina is a food bank operating as a single integrated organization under the Feeding America network, serving 24 counties across North and South Carolina. Its portfolio centers on a core food distribution and partner agency network (950+ agencies), supplemented by targeted feeding programs for children (Backpack Program, Kids Café, School Mobile Pantry), seniors (Senior Box/CSFP Program), veterans, families, and pets. Additional offerings include disaster relief, SNAP application assistance, an online food pantry locator, and signature fundraising events (Chef's Best, Sort-A-Rama, Empty Bowls). Remote volunteer kit programs and food/fund drives round out community engagement. In FY 2024-2025, the organization distributed nearly 90 million pounds of food and household items.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Food Distribution and Partner Agency Network Core food bank operations that solicit, store, and distribute food and household items across 24 counties through a network of 950+ partner agencies including emergency pantries, soup kitchens, shelters, and low-income daycares. Handled approximately 90 million pounds of food and household items in FY 2023-2024 and served over 4.5 million individuals annually.
• Backpack Program Weekend food backpack program providing seven nutritious, ready-to-eat or easy-to-prepare food items to food-insecure children across North and South Carolina on weekends and holidays when school meals are unavailable. Provides over 520,000 backpacks annually in 22 counties.
• School Mobile Pantry Program On-site drive-through food distributions at schools providing pre-packed boxes of staple goods, produce, meat, eggs, whole grain breads, and essential non-food items averaging 40-50 pounds per family. Targets high-poverty schools to supplement the Backpack program.
• Kids Café Program Provides free meals, snacks, and nutrition education to at-risk children during the school year and summer months.
• Senior Box Program (CSFP) Monthly food box distribution for seniors meeting income eligibility requirements, operated as the Commodity Supplemental Food Program. Partner agencies including Common Heart, Montgomery Council on Aging, and Stanly Christian Ministry serve as distribution points.
• Feeding Veterans Program Food assistance program targeting the estimated 1 in 9 food-insecure working-age veterans in the service area.
• Feeding Pets Program Pet food and supply distribution supporting families and seniors who struggle to feed their pets; receives large donations of pet food along with pet supply items.
• Disaster Relief Program Emergency response program that activates to collect and distribute food and funds for national, local, and regional disasters. Activated for events including Hurricane Helene recovery, including receipt of three truckloads of frozen chicken and pet treats from Perdue Farms.
• SNAP Assistance Staff-assisted SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) application and recertification support for eligible individuals and families in both North Carolina and South Carolina, including appointment scheduling and eligibility guidance.
• Agency Finder / Food Pantry Locator Online search tool allowing users to find nearby food pantries and soup kitchens by zip code, county, or distance filter across all 24 counties in the service region.
• Chef's Best Annual signature fundraising event featuring a VIP chef, food, beer and wine, live music, and live and silent auctions. Presented by Harris Teeter and the Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority, held at the Charlotte Convention Center with approximately 750 guests.
• Sort-A-Rama Half-day volunteer team-building event where volunteers assemble thousands of food boxes for the School Mobile Pantry program. Held at the Charlotte Convention Center; most recent event on August 5, 2026 assembled 16,000 food boxes with hundreds of volunteers. Presented by Food Lion Feeds.
• Empty Bowls Annual signature fundraiser where potters donate handmade ceramic bowls; attendees receive a bowl as a reminder of hunger in the community. Presented by Food Lion Feeds and the Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority.
• Remote Volunteer Activity Kits Off-site volunteer activity kits (Snack Bags, Hygiene Kits, New Baby Kits, Birthday Kits, Summer Bags, Pet Pack Bags, and Cards of Encouragement) that workplace and community groups can assemble and deliver to the food bank's main warehouse.
• Amazon Wishlist Direct Donation Program Direct donation program via Amazon Wishlist that allows supporters to ship needed items directly to the food bank's warehouse.

Quantifiable outcome

• 90 million pounds of food distributed annually to over 4.5 million individuals
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Feature1 record

Partnerships

16 partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.

• Radio One CharlottecoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 15 October 2024Help One Another radiothon benefiting Hurricane Helene relief
• Perdue FarmscoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 4 October 2024Three truckloads of frozen chicken and pet treats donated for Hurricane Helene recovery
• PublixcoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 14 May 2024100 million pounds of produce milestone donated to Feeding America; 11.8 million pounds to NC food banks
• Smart ChickencoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 17 January 202455,500 pounds of protein donated to support hunger relief
• Feeding AmericacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational food bank network affiliation providing resources, best practices, and collaborative opportunities across the Feeding America network of 200+ food banks
• Feeding the CarolinascoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional food bank network affiliation connecting North and South Carolina food banks
• Food Lion FeedsflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerTitle sponsor of Empty Bowls and Sort-A-Rama events, major corporate supporter
• Harris TeeterflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerPresenting sponsor of Chef's Best event and partner for produce donations like Consalo Family Farms mandarins distribution
• Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority (CRVA)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerCo-presenter of Chef's Best and Empty Bowls signature events
• WalmartflagshipGTM or Marketing Partner12th annual Fight Hunger. Spark Change. campaign raised over $268,000; campaign has generated $186 million+ nationally
• Sam's ClubflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerFight Hunger. Spark Change. campaign partner with Walmart
• Atrium HealthcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerPresenting sponsor of Sort-A-Rama 2026
• Edward JonescoreGTM or Marketing PartnerPresenting sponsor of Sort-A-Rama 2026
• EquitablecoreGTM or Marketing PartnerPresenting sponsor of Sort-A-Rama 2026
• TIAAcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerPresenting sponsor of Sort-A-Rama 2026
• Hendrick Automotive GroupminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSort-A-Rama meal packing event partnership

Scale indicators15 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Food Bank of Central & Eastern North Carolina: Feeding America-affiliated regional food bank serving 34 counties in central and eastern NC with comparable food sourcing, partner-agency distribution model, and child/senior feeding programs. Direct peer in overlapping North Carolina service geography.
• MANNA FoodBank: Feeding America member food bank serving 16 western NC counties through partner agencies and direct programs. Directly comparable in mission, distribution model, and Carolinas footprint, with similar volunteer-driven operating structure.
• Lowcountry Food Bank: Feeding America food bank serving 10 coastal South Carolina counties. Directly comparable in model, scale, and Carolinas service geography; competes for some of the same donor and corporate partner relationships.
• Capital Area Food Bank: Feeding America member food bank serving the Washington DC metro area with similar partner-agency network, child nutrition programs, and volunteer-driven operating model. Comparable in mission and program structure.
• Gleaners Community Food Bank: Large Feeding America regional food bank serving southeast Michigan with comparable partner-agency distribution, child nutrition programs, and disaster response capabilities. Closely matched in operational scale (~90M pounds range).
• Harvest Hope Food Bank: Feeding America regional food bank serving 20 counties in South Carolina with comparable partner-agency distribution model and child feeding programs. Strong peer given overlap with Second Harvest's SC service area.
• Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma: Feeding America member food bank serving 53 Oklahoma counties with similar partner-agency distribution model, child feeding programs, and Backpack-style school partnerships. Comparable in mission and rural-urban blend.

Broad incumbents

• Feeding America: National parent network of 200+ food banks including Second Harvest Metrolina. Operates the same food-sourcing and distribution model at scale; comparable as the umbrella entity setting strategy, donor relationships, and shared logistics infrastructure that this organization depends on.

Others

• Meals on Wheels America: National nonprofit network addressing senior hunger through home-delivered meals. Comparable in nonprofit model serving food-insecure seniors and competing for similar corporate and foundation funding pools; differs in delivery mechanism (home delivery vs. partner-agency distribution).
• Feeding the Carolinas: Regional association of NC and SC food banks that convenes Second Harvest Metrolina with peer organizations for collective advocacy, shared resources, and funding access. Enables direct comparison on capacity-building and grant capture.

Market position

Strengths1 record

Weaknesses1 record

Competitive moat5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/with_replies
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@secondharvestmetrolina
• Facebookfacebook.com/SHmetrolina
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/second-harvest-food-bank-of-metrolina
• Instagraminstagram.com/secondharvestmetrolina

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds3 records

Investors3 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina