Harris Teeter - Giving Programs

Giving Programs

Harris Teeter believes in giving back to the communities it serves. To help us accomplish this goal we focus our giving on five main areas: eliminating hunger, educating children, promoting children’s wellness, non-profit partnerships and disaster relief.

When supporting our focus areas, we prefer to give directly to a non-profit organization with a specific project rather than fundraising efforts such as golf tournaments, dinners or advertising. Harris Teeter can not contribute to individuals, deficit reduction or operating reserves; trips, tours or student exchange programs; or fund drives conducted by religious or political organizations.

Eliminating Hunger:
Harris Teeter has partnered with Feeding America (formerly America's Second Harvest) in an effort to ensure that less fortunate community members do not go hungry. To meet this aspiration, Harris Teeter holds annual holiday dinners, gives shoppers the opportunity to contribute to area food banks through in-store campaigns, hosts food drives throughout the year to benefit America’s Second Harvest, and raises hundreds of thousands of dollars during the company’s annual spring golf tournament.

Lastly, Harris Teeter distributes over 3.2 million pounds of product to America’s Second Harvest Food Bank annually through its reclamation program. The company also allows food pantries to collect day old bakery and produce items at the store level.

Non-Profit Partnerships:
Harris Teeter realizes that it would be nearly impossible to support all of the needs of the communities it serves. When selecting non-profit partners, Harris Teeter chooses to align itself with charities such as the United Way who support a network of organizations in the specific communities in which Harris Teeter is located. The company also partners with large non-profit organizations that are advocates for medical research, education, and building healthier lives. These organizations include, but are not limited to, the Muscular Dystrophy Association, the American Heart Association, and the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.

Educating Children:
In 1998, Harris Teeter launched Together in Education (TIE), giving shoppers an opportunity to support the educational needs of their community’s youth. To date, TIE has donated over $11.3 million to area schools. During the 2007-2008 school year, 350 additional schools joined the TIE program and over 16,000 new participants linked their VIC cards to schools. Harris Teeter also donated over $1.5 million to these schools.

Promoting Children’s Wellness:
Childhood obesity is increasing at an alarming rate. Armed with this knowledge, and with its customers’ health in mind, Harris Teeter launched its yourwellness program in March of 2006. The program is designed to make it easier for shoppers to choose nutritional items for their families. Harris Teeter publishes free yourwellness brochures to educate shoppers on a variety of health topics, including childhood obesity.

In addition to following a healthy diet, it is also important for children to be active. To encourage exercise, Harris Teeter donates to the YMCA and youth sports. Activities such as baseball, soccer and basketball help children get moving, burn calories and stay well.

Disaster Relief:
When times of crisis arise in Harris Teeter service areas, the company strives to provide relief to its shoppers and help supply them with the tools needed to get back to a normal way of life. For instance, if a hurricane looks as though it may hit a Harris Teeter community, the company will implement a plan to get free ice and water out to its shoppers in case of extended power outages.

Harris Teeter's 2008 contributions of over $5.7 million are in large part due to the participation of its vendors, customers and associates. Without their donations or purchases at our registers, this number would be much smaller. Harris Teeter is committed to the communities where its customers and associates live and work, and we will continue to give associates an opportunity to donate to organizations that make a difference in the lives of their friends and colleagues.