We appreciate all you do in the fight to end hunger and we want to help you build your organization’s capacity and support your work in the community. Here you’ll find lots of resources to help you with your food distribution as well as all the forms you’ll need.
PARTNER
REPORTING
Click the links below to report monthly statistics.
- Meal Providers: https://forms.office.com/r/G5gbKhhCqW
- Traditional Partner: https://forms.office.com/r/zh1L7PbCBq
- TEFAP: https://forms.office.com/r/4DQqQ7a0cs
- College Pantry: https://forms.office.com/r/1uEjNM4Nfk
- Senior Grocery: https://forms.office.com/r/9wLVWjn0ib
- Mobile School Pantry: https://forms.office.com/r/sVQ8Hm47XJ
Log in here to report Grocery Rescue Program pounds via MealConnect.
SAFE FOOD HANDLING
GUIDELINES
Please reach out to your coordinator to receive the ServSafe guide. This guide includes important things to look out for when evaluating canned goods and other items for food safety. Please take the ServSafe quiz to become Safe Food Handling Certified. We recommend reviewing the Safe Food Handling Guide prior to taking the quiz.
FORMS
This section includes the Record-Keeping Tally Sheet, a refrigerator/freezer temperature log, food label date guides and TEFAP documents.
Record-Keeping Tally Sheet
You can use this form to track households and people served at your distributions.
Temperature Log
All refrigerators and freezers used to store food are required to have a temperature log posted on it, and temperatures to be logged daily.
Food Label Date Guides
If you receive product (from Second Harvest, through the Grocery Rescue Program or through your own food drive) that is past the stamped “best by” or “use by” date, the following USDA-backed guidelines provide information regarding the length of time that the product is actually safe to eat.
TEFAP Documents
For TEFAP partners, required documentation can be found below. Click on the document name to open.
BECOME A COMMUNITY PARTNER
Together We Can
Feed OC
Thank you for your interest in joining Second Harvest Food Bank of Orange County’s Partner Network. Second Harvest Food Bank provides millions of pounds of food each year to our partners and pantries. They include houses of worship, schools, after-school programs, senior centers, shelters for the unhoused, soup kitchens and transitional housing facilities. Our partners serve a variety of demographics throughout Orange County including children, seniors, working families, individuals experiencing homelessness, etc.
PROGRAMS
We offer a variety of programs that are based on the type of organization and those they serve:
- Youth Hunger
- Senior Hunger
- Kids Cafe
- Traditional Partners – nonprofits with a 501(c)(3)
REQUIREMENTS
All partner organizations must meet the following requirements:
- Be an Orange County-based organization, with all food being distributed within Orange County.
- Be led by someone who is not receiving food from the food distribution program.
- Have adequate storage for both perishable and non-perishable food.
- Hold food distributions at least twice per month.
- Must not charge for food or be reimbursed or compensated; or require services in exchange for food.
- Must provide some level of client choice.
- Must not redistribute food to other partners or non-partner organizations. All food received must be used exclusively for direct distribution to clients in need.
- Must not discriminate for any reason.
- Must not require evidence of ID, income, or address.
- Meet our regular reporting requirements.
- Communicate with us on a regular basis and actively engage in the partnership with Second Harvest.
NEXT STEPS
If your organization meets the above requirements and you’d like to partner with Second Harvest, please email us at agency@feedoc.org. After we receive your inquiry, we will connect you with the appropriate team member based on your program interest (see Programs above).
For organizations seeking a Traditional Partnership (nonprofits with 501(c)(3) status), we will provide a Partnership Eligibility Form to assess eligibility. Eligible organizations will be placed on our waitlist and revisited during the next application period which takes place in February and August. Those that do not meet the eligibility criteria will be notified.
For organizations interested in the other programs, we will forward your email to the Second Harvest program coordinator who will follow up with specific timelines and next steps.
Thank you for your interest in partnering with us to provide dignified, equitable and consistent access to nutritious food to our Orange County community!
Jill Wilson decided to volunteer with Second Harvest in 2008 when she was in between jobs and looking for a way to apply her talents that could benefit the community. She arrived one day at Second Harvest’s former distribution center in Orange, ready to serve, and felt immediately connected to the mission.
Like Jill and Ian, other friends of the food bank may be looking for ways to connect meaningfully with Second Harvest to help those experiencing hunger in Orange County for years to come. One simple way to make a significant impact, while achieving peace of mind, is by creating a will or revocable living trust with our partner, FreeWill.
March is National Nutrition Month, an annual awareness campaign that encourages us to learn about nutrition, develop healthy eating habits and discover the fun of being physically active. At Second Harvest Food Bank of Orange County, we strive to provide everyone in Orange County with the nutrition they need to grow and excel in life.
Last spring, here at Second Harvest we completely revamped our focus to proactively purchase fresh nutrition for those in need, ensuring a steady pipeline of protein, dairy, eggs, fruits and vegetables to our approximately 300 partner and program sites. As a next step, we recently unveiled our new, 6,200-square-foot cold storage facility and two additional cold docks that establish a “cold chain” at our distribution center in Irvine. This gives us a total of 14,550 square feet of cold storage, which greatly enhances our ability to source and distribute more nutritious food.
Second Harvest continues to fight increasing food insecurity through our Pop-Up Drive Thru food distributions with the help of many amazing volunteers and it is no surprise that many of them are mothers. Jacqueline is one such volunteer and I wanted to learn more of her story.
here to volunteer representing other mothers…to give back to the community, to be a role model to my children. As a mother, as a woman, as a friend, as a wife…you have so many hats you have to put on and one of them is giving. When I go home my daughter asks me, “Mom what did you do today?” And I say, “I got to give back to people, people that really don’t have as much as we do.” Hopefully she sees me doing this and then as she gets older, she’ll want to give back just the same way.”
Pantry. Their style traditionally has always been very welcoming and focused on building relationships with those they serve. They would put out coffee and pastries and spend time talking with the families who would come early just to socialize.
One of Nancy’s key volunteers, Mary Kaye, also shared insights. Mary Kaye is an emergency room doctor who has been spending much of her spare time serving at the Saint Timothy pantry. She began volunteering pre-COVID by taking blood pressures on pantry days and translating for Spanish-speaking clients.. All the changes have her missing conversations and connecting with the families they serve.
can take your blood pressure soon,” and encouraging them.”
Whatever the situation that keeps students on campus and struggling to feed themselves, the Fresh Basic Needs Hub at UCI remains open to serve them, supported by food from Second Harvest. Student hunger is a serious challenge, made even worse by the pandemic, but Fresh, as it’s called, has the mission to provide for the basic needs of UCI students, allowing them to focus on academics.
Last week did not feel hopeful. Seeing the injustice of the past few days makes me cringe. It causes me to grieve when I see people treated unfairly or worse. But I’m choosing to move forward with hope. How can I have hope this week? Because I know Andrea and I see how she treats people who sometimes feel trapped. The team at Fresh, and all the other college pantries in Orange County serve as a lifeline for their students, providing for basic needs and offering a dignified experience for everyone who comes to them for help. Their service is a beacon of hope in the darkness.
redirected those emotions toward survival and humility. While it was a very difficult decision, Stephen and Kristina decided that in order to make it through this crisis, they would need to receive assistance the first time in their lives. This is what it means to be newly vulnerable.