LATEST NEWS

On August 25, CACFP Roundtable met with the White House Office of Management and Budget as USDA drafts its proposed CACFP meal pattern rule. We led with what providers, operators, sponsors, and state staff told us in our "Getting Ready to Comment" survey: 72% say compliance costs already outpace reimbursement, and 70% want funding tied to any new requirements. Here's what we shared with OMB, and why the survey is still open.

This session, From Insight to Impact - How to Comment, was the last of the CACFP Roundtable's Growing Our Voice series. In this session, we talked about what it looks like to provide public comment, what it means, and the importance of a large volume of comments - especially unique comments. Summary You can watch the 30 minute recording here. Slides can be accessed here. Highly recommend taking the time to listen at minute 15:11 when Lindsay Datlow, PhD, R.D., explains what

A new published study provides evidence that CACFP costs have outpaced reimbursement.

On July 24th, the Federal CACFP reimbursement rates were published. In California, operators receive a state meal reimbursement (SMR). The Federal and State rates have now been published on CDSS CACFP Branch's website. We are getting ready for the anticipated meal pattern proposed rule - we want comments to be rooted in the community's experience. Please fill out this survey and join us for our last session of the Growing Our Voice series, in which you will get some insight i

Today, August 10, CDSS CACFP Branch published a CACFP Bulletin, Child and Adult Care Food Bulletin (CB) CDSS-CACFP-2026-02, Expanding Fluid Milk Options in Child Nutrition Programs. This CACFP Bulletin provides guidance on the final rule published by the U.S. Department of Agriculture on May 8, 2026, which became effective June 8, 2026, and expands fluid milk options by allowing operators of the Child and Adult Care Food Program to offer whole and reduced-fat milk to particip

Today, the CACFP Roundtable shared community experiences that have been gathered through a survey and talking with CACFP community members. You can review the 30 minute recording here. Bottom Line (so far): Operators, state agencies, and sponsors are excited to serve healthy, nutritious meals. That is why they work so hard to be part of this program. They say yes to healthy meals — and they also say: we need time, we need funds, and we need flexibility, and these changes need

The new CACFP reimbursement rates were published in the Federal Register today. They increased incrementally across all programs. They do not include Cash-in-Lieu or the California State Meal Reimbursement. Above Table from the Federal Register publication Comparison Tables from the CACFP Roundtable. Also, here is a PDF of the tables. We have a new Learning Hub, so you can easily see all of the great possibilities to advance your leadership in CACFP. Check it out!

Today we came together to discuss how what we think might be in the anticipated meal pattern proposed rule would impact the Child and Adult Care Food Program. Review the 30-minute recording here. We provided a quick overview of the initial survey results to get a dialogue started. The top 5 themes that came through the survey were: More time More Funding Flexibility Clear Definitions Realistic Expectations about What People Will Eat During the discussion, the community shared

Yesterday, we came together to talk about what a proposed rule is and what it means to make public comment as we gear up to educate USDA FNA about the ground level operations of CACFP when the anticipated meal pattern proposed rule is published. The biggest takeaway? Your unique voice matters within the CACFP community's unified message. Watch the 30 minute recording to: Learn about the policy "lever" we're going to pull with the public comment on the proposed rule An overvie

CACFP Roundtable is proud to welcome three new members to our Board of Directors — Amanda Meninos, Haley Village, and Jodi Kuhn. Each brings deep expertise, a passion for the CACFP community, and a genuine commitment to our mission. Read on to meet them.

Today, Lindsay Datlow, PhD, RD, Senior Vice President, Caprock Strategies and Jodi Kuhn, Director of Regulatory Compliance Kindercare, Learning Companies and President of the National CACFP Forum, joined us for our first introductory session as we unpack and get ready to use our experiences and public voice as the administration considers changes to the CACFP meal pattern through the proposed rule-making process. Thank you, Lindsay and Jodi, for volunteering your time to help

Updated 8/24/2026 Review the recordings and resources here. Register Now for Growing Our Voice: Powering Up on the Proposed USDA Meal Pattern Rule. Growing Our Voice is a recurring learning series designed by the CACFP Roundtable to help our community understand, navigate, and confidently respond to the anticipated proposed rule that will change the meal pattern for the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP). Each session will focus on easily digestible information to help

Nonprofit organizations often face unpredictable challenges that test their resilience and ability to serve their communities effectively. Navigating uncertainty requires clear strategies and practical tools designed to strengthen organizational capacity. The Wallace Foundation’s Strong Nonprofits Toolkit offers a comprehensive resource to help nonprofits build stability and adapt to changing circumstances. Sarah Walker, who knows this toolkit well, will be speaking at the up

Updated: 5/21/2026 with California CDSS CACFP Branch email addressing whole milk. Final Rule about Whole Milk USDA published the final rule "Expanding Fluid Milk Options in Child Nutrition Programs" last week. The rule becomes effective on June 8, 2026. This rule sets regulations around the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act and alignment with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2025-2030. The Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act expands fluid milk options in the National School Lun

USDA FNS published a Request for Information (RFI) in regard to the “Opportunities, Challenges, and Emerging Areas in Statistical Data, Analysis, and Research at the U.S Department of Agriculture This RFI asks for feedback in regard to the data that comes out of the Economic Research Service (ERS), the National Agriculture Statistics Service (NASS), and the World Agricultural Outlook Board (OCE-WAOB). As it relates to CACFP, ERS, is the “Recognized Statistical Agency and Uni

Join us at the CACFP Roundtable by offering your leadership and vision as a Director of our Board. Take part in shaping a better CACFP today and tomorrow. (Plus, we are a pretty fun group!) The CACFP Roundtable is seeking individuals who are passionate about the Child and Adult Care Food Program and committed to serving the CACFP community. By volunteering to serve on the CACFP Roundtable Board you can have an immediate and lasting impact; gain expertise on complex issues; b

We love CACFP Week. It's an opportunity to celebrate so many things and people in our unique and special community. 🍎 Celebrating CACFP Week The People Behind the Plate We celebrate the dedicated hands that make healthy meals possible: Administrators: Those who master the paperwork and rules. The Kitchen Team: Creators of menus, recipes, and daily meals. Caregivers: Providing healthy service to children and adults. Logistics & Procurement: The people transporting food an

Background This month, the CACFP community has received communications from CDSS CACFP Branch about recent data shared with USDA FNS for the Claims Validation Review (CVR) and some upcoming site-visits. We then held a Zoom pop-up meeting with CDSS CACFP Branch to provide clarification, where possible, about the process of anticipated visits, information shared, and what to expect. CDSS CACFP Branch answered questions they could until further direction was given by USDA FNS.

Join us for a virtual CACFP Roundtable Deep Dive on March 10th from 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m pacific time all focused around helping the mealtime experience with children who have different eating preferences. This deep dive is designed to help us think about taste and texture preferences as well as different types of mealtime behaviors. This deep dive will include simultaneous Spanish interpretation. Date: March 10th Time: 9: a.m - 12:00 p.m. pacific Where: Online Register her

Update 2/27/2026: Update about what is happening with the Claims Validation Review and USDA FNS off-site and on-site visits. Pop-Up Zoom Meeting: On-Site Claims Verification/Validation Reviews (CDSS Notice) 🗓️ Thursday at 11:00 AM Pacific | 📍 Zoom ⭐ Free for CACFP Roundtable Members 🏷️ $25.00 Non-members Register here Our communities are facing uncertainty and hardship in a number of ways. This week, California Department of Social Services - CACFP Branch, sent an e