New State of Obesity Report Highlights the CACFP and the People Behind the Program

The People Behind the Meals 

Alexia's interview brings attention to an important part of the CACFP story: the people responsible for putting the program into practice every day. 

“CACFP operators are caregivers first and foremost. They support children and older adults every day while providing nutritious meals alongside many other responsibilities” she said. 

CACFP operators are balancing many responsibilities beyond meal service, and meeting program requirements can require significant time and attention. 

“I spoke with a provider recently who gets up at 5:30 in the morning to cook, opens at 7:30 and doesn't close until 5:30 at night. Twelve hours a day, every day, and that's not even counting compliance paperwork.” 

For providers, the work involved in serving a meal extends well beyond preparing and serving food. 

“For providers, serving a reimbursable meal involves much more than simply putting food on the table. They often need to gather product documentation, verify meal pattern requirements, determine ounce equivalents, assess whether foods qualify as whole grain-rich and maintain detailed menu records. That's just for one meal. When you multiply those tasks across multiple meals and snacks every day, the paperwork adds up quickly.” 

TFAH's report also highlights the importance of ensuring providers have the support they need to successfully implement future changes to nutrition standards.  

 “Successfully implementing new nutrition standards will require investment, training and ongoing support,” Alexia Thex, MEd said.  

While CACFP operators are committed to providing nutritious meals and snacks, implementing new requirements takes time, resources and continued technical assistance. Ensuring providers have that support will be critical to the successful implementation of future program changes. 

 

Strengthening the CACFP Means Addressing Barriers to Participation 

Alexia's interview also highlights longstanding challenges that can make it difficult for providers to participate in and successfully operate the CACFP. 

“In our surveys, providers consistently cite the lack of sufficient reimbursement as a concern, but we also frequently hear that the administrative requirements can outweigh the financial benefit of participation.” 

These challenges matter because the CACFP serves 4.8 million children daily, while also supporting meals and snacks for older adults. Yet the program remains less widely recognized than other federal nutrition programs. 

“The CACFP might be the most unrecognized of the child nutrition programs and could make an even larger impact with greater investment, especially utilizing these experts, the childcare and adult care providers.” 

Alexia also shared an example that illustrates the care and attention CACFP operators bring to their work. 

“We visited an adult care setting a few years back, and I still think about the color-coded note cards the provider created to track every individually modified meal. It's amazing work. It's kind of inspirational. And I wish more people knew about it.” 

 

Healthy Habits Start Early 

The report's discussion of nutrition programs also reinforces the importance of reaching children during the earliest years of life. 

“There's research out there that the most formative years for healthy outcomes are zero to five. If we wait until school age to start implementing some of these healthy habits, they've already spent five years forming their taste preferences, learning about what they're supposed to eat.” 

The CACFP reaches children during this important stage while also supporting adults in care settings, making it an important part of the nation's nutrition infrastructure. 

 

A Call for Investment and Action 

The 2026 State of Obesity report comes at an important time for conversations about nutrition policy and the implementation of the 2025–2030 Dietary Guidelines. 

TFAH notes that USDA and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services have not yet issued new overarching nutrition standards or guidance aligning CACFP, school meals, WIC and other nutrition programs with the new Dietary Guidelines. Both agencies have indicated that guidance is forthcoming. 

NCA continues to advocate for policies that would strengthen the CACFP, including increased reimbursement, reduced administrative burdens, expanded meal-service options and modernized program operations. 

“Two important opportunities for Congress are the Child Care Nutrition Enhancement Act and the Early Childhood Nutrition Improvement Act,” explained Alexia. Together, these bills would strengthen the CACFP by increasing reimbursement, addressing longstanding barriers to participation, streamlining program administration and modernizing program operations.” 

Both bills were reintroduced in Congress in April 2025 and address longstanding challenges facing CACFP operators. The Child Care Nutrition Enhancement Act would increase reimbursement and make other changes to support family child care providers, while the Early Childhood Nutrition Improvement Act would allow providers operating for more than eight hours to receive reimbursement for an additional meal. 

 

Recognizing the Value of the CACFP 

The State of Obesity report offers an important opportunity to bring greater attention to the CACFP and the people who make it possible. 

From child care providers preparing meals before their doors open to adult care providers carefully adapting meals for individual needs, CACFP operators do much more than serve food. They help children build healthy habits, support older adults, strengthen communities and ensure millions of participants have access to nutritious food every day. They are the reason the program works 

NCA is proud to contribute to this national conversation and will continue advocating for the resources, policies and support CACFP operators need to serve their communities. 

Read the full report:  2026 State of Obesity: Better Policies for a Healthier America report from Trust for America's Health.