What can you do outside of meal service to prepare children for family style dining?
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Across the nation, racial inequities have impacted access to federal nutrition programs for people of color. The report by D.C. Hunger Solutions aims to address how racial inequities contribute to hunger and poverty among residents of color in the District of Columbia and to lack of access to federal nutrition programs.
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According to a USDA report, one in every five children in the United States is food insecure, meaning that approximately 13 million children do not know where their next meal will come from. The CACFP provides quality meals to many of these children and helps working families protect their children against hunger. Read more about how CACFP contributes to food security.
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Kate Abernathy is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Providers Choice which is a state-wide sponsoring organization of 3,000 family child care homes and 90 centers in Minnesota. Hear from Kate!
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What is family style dining in the CACFP?
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USDA released a final rule that revises regulations to align the WIC food packages with the current Dietary Guidelines for Americans and to reflect recommendations from the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine while promoting nutrition security and equity and considering program administration.
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The National CACFP Sponsors Association is excited to introduce the newest group of scholarship winners for the 2024 National Child Nutrition Conference!
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Next week is National Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) Week! Over 138,000 child and adult care providers serve nutritious meals to over 4.5 million children and adults every day with the help of 24,000 supporting institutions. Join us in celebrating throughout the week.
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Check out these virtual events coming up at NCA!
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100 More Scholarships! February 7, 2024 While we have already awarded 15 scholarships to attend the National Child Nutrition Conference, April 22-26, we are thrilled to announce that we’re opening up applications for even more scholarships! We’ll be giving away up to 100 scholarships, which is over $50,000 dedicated to enhancing educational opportunities for the…
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Check out these virtual events coming up at NCA!
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Seven in-person and eight virtual scholarships have been awarded from the National CACFP Sponsors Association (NCA) for the 2024 National Child Nutrition Conference.
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According to a USDA report, one in every five children in the United States is food insecure, meaning that approximately 13 million children do not know where their next meal will come from. The CACFP provides quality meals to many of these children and helps working families protect their children against hunger. Read more about how CACFP contributes to food security.
Read More
USDA released a final rule that revises regulations to align the WIC food packages with the current Dietary Guidelines for Americans and to reflect recommendations from the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine while promoting nutrition security and equity and considering program administration.
Read More
Since our last policy updated, there has been new legislation introduced, a proposed rule for serious deficiency released, as well as federal and state recognition of the CACFP. There have also been multiple pieces of USDA guidance and FRAC research published regarding the CACFP.
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Over 20 million children leave school each day unsure if they will have supper at home. There’s help for that. Afterschool programs can take advantage of the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP), offered by the USDA,
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On March 20, 2023, the Early Childhood Nutrition Improvement Act was introduced in the Senate by Senator Bob Casey (PA) This legislation would allow providers who are open for more than 8 hours to be reimbursed for an additional meal.
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This year, National CACFP Week was formally recognized at federal and state levels. 17 Governors proclaimed CACFP week in their state and a resolution was introduced in the congressional House of Representatives and the Senate.
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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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The Exhibit A Grains Tool has a new feature that allows users to select their Program and Meal to filter the search results to only creditable grain items for their specific Program.
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CDC created three new fact sheets for Early Care and Education (ECE) providers about Early Child Nutrition and Feeding. The fact sheets offer tips and best practices for supporting breastfeeding families, information about safe storage and handling of breastmilk, and strategies for introducing solid foods.
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What can you do outside of meal service to prepare children for family style dining?
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What is family style dining in the CACFP?
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Is shelf-stable yogurt reimbursable in the CACFP?
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What is needed to serve quiche as part of a reimbursable meal?
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Are all soy beverages creditable in the CACFP?
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What is a cheese product, and is it creditable?
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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.
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
The Exhibit A Grains Tool has a new feature that allows users to select their Program and Meal to filter the search results to only creditable grain items for their specific Program.
Read More
CDC created three new fact sheets for Early Care and Education (ECE) providers about Early Child Nutrition and Feeding. The fact sheets offer tips and best practices for supporting breastfeeding families, information about safe storage and handling of breastmilk, and strategies for introducing solid foods.
Read More
Across the nation, racial inequities have impacted access to federal nutrition programs for people of color. The report by D.C. Hunger Solutions aims to address how racial inequities contribute to hunger and poverty among residents of color in the District of Columbia and to lack of access to federal nutrition programs.
Read More
When combined, the CACFP and Farm to Early Care Education (Farm to ECE) activities can have an extraordinary impact on children, child care providers, and local communities. FRAC’s report aims to support child care providers to access CACFP and utilize it for eligible Farm to ECE activities by highlighting the mutually beneficial synergy between these initiatives.
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The CACFP is an indicator for state-level obesity prevention. The inclusion of the CACFP as an indicator for obesity-prevention shows that the CACFP is an important, recognized factor for proper development in the earliest stages of life.
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The University of Colorado College of Nursing published their 2022 Annual Report on Achieving a State of Healthy Weight. The report determines how state regulations support obesity prevention in licensed ECE programs. It also highlights state successes and identifies opportunities for ECE regulations to improve support of obesity prevention in young children.
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A study was published in October 2023 by the UConn Rudd Center for Food Policy and Health to explore federal and state policies and practices that support or discourage CACFP participation among child care centers. The report approaches: program outreach and administration, barriers that make CACFP participation challenging, and recommendations to expand access to CACFP for eligible providers.
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A study was published in October 2023 by the Urban Institute to identify major gaps in the CACFP’s coverage and ability to reach children. The study specifically focused on CACFP eligibility for small home-based child care providers who are legally exempt from their state’s child care licensing requirements.
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With experience and credentials like hers, it’s no surprise that the Food and Nutrition Services office selected Andrea Rivera to create a new community food service program at the start of the pandemic.
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Kyle Jackson is an area director of Boys & Girls Clubs of Larimer County, and a true leader in executing at-risk after school meal operation
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People Attentive to Children Hawaii, PATCH, has a straightforward mission: to support and improve the quality and availability of care for the young people of Hawaii. In fact, this mission is stated so plainly that it could be misunderstood as easy when it is simply direct.
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Sunshine Academy is a preschool and daycare with three locations in Utah and the CACFP at its heart. Overseeing it all is Derek Sego.
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Community Action Council of Lexington, Kentucky is a Head Start program and CACFP sponsor for 20 child development sites throughout Kentucky. Laura Sheffield is the Health and Nutrition Director, and she and her staff operate the CACFP with outstanding care and creativity.
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Genia Boutwell manages the CACFP meals served through the Poarch Creek Indians Boys & Girls Club, and she’s a champion for child nutrition.
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