Skip to content
Login

Back to Blog

Incorporating Local Beef Into CNP Meals

February 19, 2026

Local Beef

USDA released a memo outlining opportunities within current CACFP and SFSP regulations for operators to procure and use local beef in their creditable meals. The release of the memo is in response to the 2025-2030 DGA recommendation to prioritize protein foods. The memo does not make any changes to current requirements of the CACFP and SFSP; it simply outlines resources to help operators source and serve local beef.

Why It Matters

Incorporating locally grown foods into CACFP and SFSP meals can be a great way to support local communities, serve more fresh foods in program meals, and teach children about where their food comes from. Purchasing local is already an option within the CACFP and SFSP, and many operators already have a process in place to procure and serve local foods. Every meal component has the potential to be purchased locally, whether it's beef from a local rancher, fruit and vegetables from the farmers market, grains from a wheat farmer, or milk from a local dairy farmer.

USDA Memo

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Child Nutrition Programs (CNP) provide nutritionally balanced meals and snacks to America’s children while strengthening American agriculture. The USDA Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) supports schools, sponsors, and institutions participating in any CNP to source nutritious, locally produced foods and serve them in program meals.

Under the leadership of Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins, USDA has recently published the USDA Plan to Fortify the American Beef Industry, which outlines actions to protect our domestic beef industry, including building demand for American beef alongside domestic supply. In collaboration with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), USDA released the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2025-2030 (Dietary Guidelines), which promotes the prioritization of protein foods. FNS supports these initiatives by continuing to expand access to locally produced foods, including locally raised beef, for children receiving CNP meals. Access to the CNP market by American livestock producers is significant, as the combined CNPs serve over 9 billion meals a year.

These initiatives come at a time of growing interest in local beef by CNP operators. In the 2023 Farm to School Census, seven percent of participating schools said that beef was their top local purchase by spending, up from two percent in 2019. In the 20222023 school year, 23 percent of SFAs purchased local proteins with another 32 percent stating that they would like to purchase local proteins in the future. As part of Secretary Rollins’ commitment to support American beef and create healthy outcomes for American children, the Farm to School Program is committed to working with CNP operators to help them source and serve local in program meals.

The following list provides helpful resources and strategies for CNP operators and ranchers to incorporate local beef into school meals. The list covers procurement, funding resources, food safety, and crediting resources and provides technical assistance contacts from the Farm to School Program. FNS encourages CNP operators to utilize this list of resources to expand access to local beef for American students. The list is compiled into a helpful table of resources geared toward CNP operators and ranchers in the attachment following this memorandum.

Connection: FNS encourages interested CNP operators, ranchers and beef vendors to connect. CNP operators and local beef producers and vendors should focus on identifying opportunities that make local beef sales and purchases a win for all operations involved. For example, important topics to discuss may include, but are not limited to local product availability, processing and packaging, cost, transportation and delivery and challenges. The Local Meat in Schools: Increasing Opportunities for Small and Mid-Sized Livestock Ranchers and Fisherman and Selling Local Food to Schools: A Resource for Producers fact sheets give examples, tips, and information for sourcing local meat and putting it on school menus.

Purchasing Strategies and Methods: CNP operators can purchase local beef using cash reimbursement or through the USDA Foods in Schools program using entitlement dollars. CNP operators can use informal and formal procurement methods and product specifications and technical requirements in solicitations to target and purchase local beef. FNS regulations at 7 CFR 210.21(g) allow CNP operators to give preference to unprocessed, locally produced foods, including beef, when procuring these products, which is called geographic preference. This preference can be applied as additional credit or points given to this product during the evaluation of responses to a solicitation or as a product specification that a vendor must meet to be considered responsive to a solicitation. For more information, please see our recent memorandum, Using Federal Funds to Purchase Local Foods, and the FNS Procuring Local Foods webpage, containing the complete collection of resources on buying locally produced foods. The webpage includes all FNS memoranda, regulations, and fact sheets on local purchasing and the USDA Procuring Local Foods for CNP Guide, which includes a chapter dedicated to buying local meat.

Food Safety: It is critical that CNP operators, ranchers, and processors understand Federal, State, local, and Tribal laws, regulations and inspection requirements that govern food safety during slaughter, processing, and food service. Please see Procuring Local Meat, Poultry, Game and Eggs for Child Nutrition Programs for details on how the Federal food safety requirements relate to State, local, and Tribal regulations and to access answers to frequently asked questions.

Food Crediting: Local beef credits the same as non-local beef. CNP operators can get information on crediting beef at the Food Buying Guide for Child Nutrition Programs webpage.

Funding Opportunity: The Farm to School Grant Program supports farm to school programming that increases local foods in school meals and connects children with agriculture, helping inspire the next generation of farmers and expand markets for producers, including beef producers. Grants are awarded on a yearly basis. To learn more about the Farm to School Grant Program, including descriptions of prior grant awards and projects focused on sourcing local beef, please visit the Farm to School Grant Program webpage. To learn more about past grant success stories, please subscribe to the DIRT, the e-newsletter of the Farm to School Program.

Attachment: Resources for Incorporating Local Beef into CNP Meals

 

Read the full guidance: Incorporating Local Beef into Child Nutrition Program Meals.