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Mealtime Memo February Mealtime Memo focuses on using protein in CACFP meals. In case you missed it, the January one was about how nutrition supports the healthy growth and development of children's minds. You can find both of those Mealtime Memos and all of the others here . CACFP 101 Webinar Stretch your food budget while still serving meals kids and adults love! Join us for CACFP: Healthy and Affordable – Serving CACFP Meals and Snacks on a Budget on February 17 at 3 PM ES

The 2026 Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) rates have been published by USDA. Table from fns.USDA.gov : https://www.fns.usda.gov/summer/sunmeals/fr-020426 The rates are annually adjusted each year and reflect the changes in the Consumer Price Index, Food Away from Home series. There was an increase in rates ranging from a 4-cent increase to a 19-cent increase, the average, as FNS USDA state,s is a 3.7 percent increase from last year. Shown above are the combined rates of op

"...[T]he flexibilities implemented were associated with a plateau in participation among Tier I providers, whereas an increasing participation trend was observed among Tier II providers, the group that received the most significant increase in reimbursements" ( Matias, et al. 2026). A trend analysis of licensed family child care providers in California that participate in the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) displays what many of us assumed in the CACFP community -

Updated 2/5/2026 The government reopened on February 3, 2026, when a bi-partisan funding bill was passed and signed by President Trump. Members of Congress took out the funding of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) as there was wide disagreement about increasing funding for the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). DHS is flat-funded for the next two weeks as Members of Congress in both chambers attempt to come to an agreement about ICE funding and rules. The

Yesterday, President Trump signed into law the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act of 2025 . This law amends the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act. The change allows whole milk to be served in schools, along with reduced-fat, low-fat, and fat-free flavored and unflavored milk. It can be organic or not organic. This bill also allows for parents to provide a written statement for a milk substitute. Previously, it was only allowed by a written statement from a licensed ph

Mealtime Memo Every month, the Institute of Child Nutrition (ICN) publishes a Mealtime Memo focusing on a topic. For January 2026, it's all about Fueling Young Minds: How Nutrition Supports Learning. It connects nutrition with brain development. Get the January Mealtime Memo and others here ! It also has a whole new look - enjoy :) CACFP 101 Webinar The next CACFP 101 Webinar hosted by ICN is focused on Mastering Food Safety! It takes place on January 20th at 3:00 p.m. easter

In 2025, we saw some proposed policy changes, actual policy changes, and some implementation changes for the CACFP. I wanted to take a moment and circle back to put it all in one place and update you about what did or did not take place. We'll also take a quick look at what is happening now at the federal level. Longest Government Shutdown in History in 2025, will there be another? Last fall, we experienced the longest government shutdown in history. Congress passed a continu

Dietary Guidelines for Americans Every five years, since 1980, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) publish a report called the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. This report is issued to help guide policy that impacts nutrition policy. It is also meant to guide doctors and the public about healthy ways to consume meals, snacks, and beverages. The Center for Science in Public Interest has an informational website about

At the 34th Annual CACFP Conference in Monterey, Family Child Care (FCC) providers stepped into the spotlight with a workshop session that broke new ground: “Let’s Talk About the Monitoring Visits to Family Child Care: Shared Goals, Seeing One Another’s Challenges, & Looking for Opportunities.” We don’t usually feature our workshop sessions here on the blog. But this one was different. It was unique, powerful, and worth lifting up. Led by members of the FCC Community of Welln

The CACFP Roundtable collaborated with researchers at the Nutrition Policy Institute (NPI), University of California, Agriculture and Natural Resources (UCANR), and the University of California, Berkley, to understand and document the impact of the Tier I for all and additional 10-cent per meal policy choices that Congress made during the COVID-19 pandemic crisis and recovery. The temporary policy changes and anticipation of them going away created a real-world and natural ex

If you've been curious about how H.R. 1 (the Big Beautiful Bill Act) might impact the Child and Adult Care Food Program, FRAC is hosting a webinar on Thursday this week. See below. H.R. 1 is the bill passed in July that creates major cuts in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Medicaid across the nation. This bill, which is in the first stages of implementation, decreases access to SNAP and Medicaid while creating tough decisions for funding state governm

CACFP, Food Access and the Government Shutdown. An opportunity to talk to community members.

Access the recording and resources from our Government Shutdown & CACFP and Food Access discussion with experts and community members across the nation.

Our communities are facing uncertainty and hardship in a number of ways. As the November 1 date approaches, states and CACFP operators still don’t have clear guidance or understanding of what to expect. In response, CACFP Roundtable and National CACFP Forum  are hosting a pop-up Zoom meeting to come together in community. This gathering is a space for CACFP sponsors, sites, operators, and partners to: Hear from anti-hunger advocates to understand what’s happening and support

We have reached day 27 of the government shutdown, and according to news reports, there doesn't seem to be an end in sight. First SNAP This weekend, USDA FNS announced in a memo that they do not have the funds to pay the states for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). It will be the responsibility of the state governments to cover the expense of these crucial benefits for some of our most vulnerable populations. In previous shutdowns, if states did cover t

On October 21st, the Institute of Child Nutrition (ICN) will be hosting CACFP: Mealtime Chats: Fostering Healthy Habits and Nutrition Education . Attendees will get to consider meaningful conversations during daily routines and mealtime discussions. The October Mealtime Memo is about Introducing Solid Foods To Infants . When to introduce solid foods How to introduce solid foods Foods to introduce Foods to avoid introducing Tips to reduce the risk of choking The CACFP Family

The Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) is a program that exists in the broader context of care settings. Humans come to the settings and humans provide the services in the settings, including healthy CACFP meals. Many of the humans in these settings, whether it's staff, providers, or the families themselves, are immigrants. This year, the Presidential Administration has issued a number of Executive Orders and has since taken actions to make our communities feel fearfu

You may have noticed that the links to Spanish resources on federal websites, including Team Nutrition, no longer work. On March 1, 2025, President Trump signed an Executive Order Designating English as the Official Language of the United States . On July 14, 2025, the Justice Department released guidance on how to implement this Executive Order. It is time for us to come together and share resources in other languages that our agencies may have access to or have downloaded.

If you are subscribed to any emails or watch the news, you most likely know that the government has officially shut down in response to...

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