Celebrity Chef Jeff Henderson Teams up with Harris Teeter and Smithfield Foods to Help Feed 100,000 North Carolina Families

Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina, the region's largest food bank and food rescue agency, received a donation of 25,000 pounds of meat to help feed local families, thanks to a partnership between Food Network celebrity Chef Jeff Henderson, Harris Teeter and Smithfield Foods’ Helping Hungry Homes™ initiative.

"Our goal is to get as much food to as many needy families as possible,” said Chef Jeff, a Smithfield community spokesman. "I am proud to be associated with Harris Teeter and my partners at Smithfield who are helping me deliver enough food to serve thousands of families in the Charlotte region. The days and weeks leading up to Christmas are some of the most difficult financially, even in the best of times. In these tough times, when people are losing their jobs, they need all the help they can get.”

Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina (SHFBM) strives through education, advocacy, and partnerships to eliminate hunger by the solicitation and distribution of food. The nonprofit organization provides a regional distribution warehouse and branches that supply food and grocery items to charitable agencies that assist people in need. It also provides training, consultation, technical assistance and hunger education to their partner agencies.

"On behalf of the 360,000 people living in poverty in our 14-county region, Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina is so appreciative of the generosity of Smithfield in donating 25,000 pounds of meat products just in time for the holidays,” said Kay Carter, Executive Director of the Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina. "Thanks to Chef Jeff, Harris Teeter and Smithfield, the holidays will be much brighter for so many in need in our community."

"Harris Teeter is committed to ending hunger in the communities it serves. Smithfield's continued support of our Harvest Feast program is vital for Second Harvest and their clients. Together we will be able to make a difference this holiday season,” said Jennifer Thompson, a Harris Teeter spokesperson.

Smithfield Foods' Helping Hungry Homes™ initiative was established to help ensure that American families in need do not go hungry. Smithfield Foods and its independent operating companies have a long history of stocking food banks, supporting after-school nutrition programs and providing food relief in the wake of natural disasters. Earlier in this year, the Helping Hungry Homes™ initiative tour distributed 250,000 pounds of meat products to food banks in ten of the nation’s largest cities, furnishing one million servings of protein to needy families.

"Smithfield Foods is eager to help those in need. Our corporate community focus is feeding the hungry and helping the disadvantaged through education,” said Joseph W. Luter IV, Executive Vice President of Smithfield Foods. "It’s a privilege for us and our Harris Teeter partners to be able to give generously to our loyal customers when the need arises. It allows us the opportunity to show our appreciation by being able to give something back.”

ABOUT SECOND HARVEST FOOD BANK: Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina was founded in 1981. They serve 14 North Carolina counties and five South Carolina counties, providing food for almost 650 partner agencies such as Urban Ministries soup kitchen, Loaves and Fishes emergency pantry, Florence Crittendon residential care facility, Uptown Men’s Shelter, Friendship Trays senior program, and Walls Memorial A.M.E. Zion, a low-income daycare provider. In fiscal year 2007-2008, SHFBM distributed over 25 million pounds of food and other essential grocery products to its service area.

ABOUT HARRIS TEETER: With headquarters in Matthews, N.C., Harris Teeter, Inc. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ruddick Corporation, a food market chain that operates in the eight-state area of North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Georgia, Tennessee, Florida, Maryland and Delaware. The company also operates stores in the District of Columbia. In addition to their 176 retail stores, they also operate grocery, frozen food, and perishable distribution centers in Greensboro and Indian Trail, N.C., as well as the Hunter Farms milk and ice cream facility in High Point, N.C.

ABOUT SMITHFIELD FOODS: Smithfield Foods (NYSE: SFD) is a global food company with operations in 13 countries through wholly-owned subsidiaries and joint ventures. Headquartered in Smithfield, Va., the company produces more than 50 brands of pork and turkey products and more than 200 gourmet foods. Employing more than 52,000 people around the globe, Smithfield Foods is the world’s largest producer and processor of pork and a leader in turkey processing.