Every day, Harald Herrmann watches a fleet of trucks being filled with more than 60,000 meals to feed the hungry.
“There is no higher purpose,” says the CEO of Second Harvest Food Bank, which last year provided more than 25 million meals.
His vision is ambitious: “To end hunger in Orange County.”
To that end, he oversees 90 employees and 26,000 volunteers who make up the largest nonprofit hunger-relief organization in the county.
Ground zero is an Irvine distribution facility where food is received, packaged and sent for delivery. Coordination involves 312 nonprofit partners and programs so that each month nonperishables and fresh produce reach more than 250,000 children, seniors and families. Herrmann has more than 35 years of experience in the restaurant industry, most recently serving as chief executive of Mendocino Farms. In 1995, he helped launch the flagship Yard House restaurant in Long Beach and later became chief executive of the company.
In 2009, he stepped into the non-profit world by co-founding Round It Up America, which lets diners round up checks to fund local food banks.
Last year, he went all in, joining Second Harvest.
