For family child care providers, the workday does not start when the first child arrives and end when the last child leaves. Behind every day of quality care are countless hours of preparation, cleaning, recordkeeping, and business management. Providers wear many hats simultaneously, acting as caregivers, teachers, cooks, janitors, accountants, compliance officers, and small business owners.
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Tammy Urich is the CACFP Coordinator at Butte 4-C’s, a Montana Resource and Referral agency that sponsors 94 family homes serving over 1,500 children.
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Can food extras be provided alongside a reimbursable meal or snack?
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August 13, 2026 Every Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) participant serves nutritious meals, but many go beyond the meal pattern to create experiences that inspire healthy habits for life. From preparing scratch-cooked meals and involving children in menu planning to growing vegetables alongside families, these programs demonstrate that nutrition education happens throughout the…
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Bhavini Patel is the owner of Kirkland Child Care, located in her home in Kirkland, Washington state. Bhavini opened Kirkland Child Care 10 years ago and has been participating in the CACFP since the opening of her program.
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For 40 years, the National CACFP Association has been committed to strengthening the Child and Adult Care Food Program by supporting the professionals who make it work every day. Training and professional development have always been central to that mission.
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The National CACFP Sponsors Association (NCA) is honored to present Robin A. Paul with the Lifetime Achievement Award for her outstanding vision, dedication, and commitment to the advancement of the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) community. For almost fifty years, Robin has dedicated her time, talent, and passion to the CACFP and the children and child care professionals of the Mid-Michigan area.
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The Monday of conference week is a sort of calm before the storm, but there is still so much to do for our attendees who arrived today! We loved meeting with everybody at the registration desks and seeing what states our attendees were coming from. We are welcoming over 1,700 people onsite in San Diego.
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Attendees of the 2023 National Child Nutrition Conference can receive up to 21 hours of CEUs, accredited by the Commission on Dietetic Registration.
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The USDA released a document with proposed revisions to Child Nutrition Programs’ meal patterns in order to be consistent with the 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. We’re partnering with USDA and other organizations to host a webinar on how these proposed changes would impact the CACFP and SFSP. After the webinar, we’ll be hosting our own Q&A session for our NCA members and their feedback.
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Fifteen scholarships have been awarded from the National CACFP Sponsors Association (NCA) for the 2023 National Child Nutrition Conference. Through the scholarship program, NCA is honored to recognize the professionals who are dedicated to ensuring that our nation’s most vulnerable populations have access to nutritious food.
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National CACFP Week is March 12-18,2023. What can you do to celebrate?
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For family child care providers, the workday does not start when the first child arrives and end when the last child leaves. Behind every day of quality care are countless hours of preparation, cleaning, recordkeeping, and business management. Providers wear many hats simultaneously, acting as caregivers, teachers, cooks, janitors, accountants, compliance officers, and small business owners.
Read More
USDA has released the Reimbursement Rates for 2026-2027. Rates are effective from July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2027.
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The USDA has released the cash-in-lieu value of USDA foods for 2026-2027. The value has increased by one and a half cents.
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Over the past few months, USDA recently released both a final rule and guidance on the expansion of fluid milk options in child nutrition programs, guidance on non-congregate SFSP program integrity, and announced information collection for the CACFP National Disqualified List. Keep reading to see what you’ve missed and stay up to date with CACFP policy!
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USDA published a final rule that allows CACFP operators to offer whole or reduced-fat milk to participants ages two and up. Here’s what the research says about milk fat in early childhood.
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Behind every CACFP meal is a system of oversight designed to maintain public trust and protect the people the program serves. Sponsoring organizations ensure compliance, accountability and continued access to nutritious meals while providing ongoing technical assistance. Here are resources that explain how program integrity is upheld in the CACFP.
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Exciting news! Head Start programs have an opportunity to access one-time supplemental funds to support nutrition services and healthy eating for enrolled children and families. You can use this funding for staff training on resources and educational opportunities to help your program improve outcomes for children and families and align with USDA requirements – like the CACFP!
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The Child and Adult Care Food Program has new creditable foods listed on the USDA Food Buying Guide! If you are new to the FBG, this interactive tool allows for easy display, search, and navigation of food yield information. In addition, users can compare yield information, create a favorite foods list, and access tools, such as the Recipe Analysis Workbook (RAW) and the Product Formulation Statement Workbook.
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The Child and Adult Care Food Program community asked for more Spanish resources to be available on the National CACFP Sponsors Association website and we heard you! Available now in Spanish are more resources to help sponsors and providers with meal pattern requirements, best practices, and so much more!
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Serving meals to young people year-round benefits children, families, and care providers. To do this, many providers transition from operating the USDA Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) At-Risk Afterschool (ARAS) during the school year to the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) while school is out. For an overview of the main differences between SFSP and CACFP ARAS, see the comparison chart below.
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NCA understands that the end of flexibilities will cause challenges for many CACFP sponsors and providers and we commend your continued commitment to providing nutritious meals and snacks to the children or adults in your care. In preparation for the end of the additional reimbursement, we have collected the following resources to help you successfully provide meals even if your available budget decreases.
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Can food extras be provided alongside a reimbursable meal or snack?
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Is there an added sugar limit when serving flavored milk to ages 6 and older?
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Is corn pone creditable in the CACFP?
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Can you add syrups to unflavored cow’s milk and have it be creditable?
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Are acorns creditable as a meat alternate?
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Can lemonade or limeade credit as the fruits component?
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Behind every CACFP meal is a system of oversight designed to maintain public trust and protect the people the program serves. Sponsoring organizations ensure compliance, accountability and continued access to nutritious meals while providing ongoing technical assistance. Here are resources that explain how program integrity is upheld in the CACFP.
Read More
Exciting news! Head Start programs have an opportunity to access one-time supplemental funds to support nutrition services and healthy eating for enrolled children and families. You can use this funding for staff training on resources and educational opportunities to help your program improve outcomes for children and families and align with USDA requirements – like the CACFP!
Read More
The Child and Adult Care Food Program has new creditable foods listed on the USDA Food Buying Guide! If you are new to the FBG, this interactive tool allows for easy display, search, and navigation of food yield information. In addition, users can compare yield information, create a favorite foods list, and access tools, such as the Recipe Analysis Workbook (RAW) and the Product Formulation Statement Workbook.
Read More
The Child and Adult Care Food Program community asked for more Spanish resources to be available on the National CACFP Sponsors Association website and we heard you! Available now in Spanish are more resources to help sponsors and providers with meal pattern requirements, best practices, and so much more!
Read More
Serving meals to young people year-round benefits children, families, and care providers. To do this, many providers transition from operating the USDA Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) At-Risk Afterschool (ARAS) during the school year to the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) while school is out. For an overview of the main differences between SFSP and CACFP ARAS, see the comparison chart below.
Read More
NCA understands that the end of flexibilities will cause challenges for many CACFP sponsors and providers and we commend your continued commitment to providing nutritious meals and snacks to the children or adults in your care. In preparation for the end of the additional reimbursement, we have collected the following resources to help you successfully provide meals even if your available budget decreases.
Read More
USDA published a final rule that allows CACFP operators to offer whole or reduced-fat milk to participants ages two and up. Here’s what the research says about milk fat in early childhood.
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The Food Research and Action Center (FRAC) released their Afterschool Supper report that snapshots participation in October 2024. They found that afterschool supper participation has increased and that CACFP represents 50% of the daily participation.
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The Stanford Center on Early Childhood released a RAPID report that looks at how issues of food insecurity and hunger are affecting adults who provide care for young children. Their key finding: hunger is on the rise among child care providers.
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USDA released their second report on the Study of Nutrition and Activity in Child Care Settings (SNACS-II), which follow their first in 2022. SNACS-II uses data from program year 2022-23 to assess how well children’s diets and CACFP meals align with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans.
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A recent study by our partners at Child Care Aware® of America reveals that parents across the nation are struggling to find affordable, high-quality child care. The survey shows that parents are piecing together multiple care arrangements and facing challenges balancing work and caregiving.
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The CDC’s 2025 Early Childhood Nutrition Report gives us a big-picture look at how young children in the U.S. are eating and growing. It focuses on kids from birth to age 5 and shares important facts about breastfeeding, starting solid foods, eating healthy and how states support good nutrition.
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Tammy Urich is the CACFP Coordinator at Butte 4-C’s, a Montana Resource and Referral agency that sponsors 94 family homes serving over 1,500 children.
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Bhavini Patel is the owner of Kirkland Child Care, located in her home in Kirkland, Washington state. Bhavini opened Kirkland Child Care 10 years ago and has been participating in the CACFP since the opening of her program.
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Cheri Wood is the Nutrition Manager at Community Action Partners of North East Missouri (CAPNEMO). As a community action organization, CAPNEMO operates many programs including their sponsorship of the CACFP for Head Start and Family Child Care Homes.
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The Metropolitan Development Council (MDC) is a community action agency based in Tacoma, Washington. As part of their various community services, MDC operates as a CACFP sponsor of family homes and child care centers, ensuring nutritious meals to 2,150 children.
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As Vice President of Business Operations with Boys & Girls Club of Truckee Meadows, Mark Jacoby ensures that 14,000 children receive nutritious meals.
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Keala Menza is the Food Program Manager at PATCH Hawai’i, a child care resource and referral (CCR&R) agency that operates as the only CACFP sponsor in Hawai’i. Read more about their work.
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NCA Response – National Disqualified List Information Collection
August 5, 2026 In June 2026, USDA released a notice of Agency Information Collection Activities: Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) National Disqualified List. This notice is of a routine collection of information, where State agencies share information on organizations and individuals who have been found seriously deficient so USDA can place them on…
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