• All meals for all eligible children are reimbursable at the same rate
• Reimbursement based on ‘meals times rate’ without comparison to actual or budgeted costs

• Follow SFSP rates for January 1 - December 31 of each year
• USDA commodities accrue for self-prep sponsors/sites at 1.5 cents per meal
• For camps: only meals served to Free and Reduced Meals (FARM) eligible children are reimbursable

• Reimbursement for supper and/or snack on regular school days
• Reimbursement for any one meal (breakfast, lunch, or supper) and/or snack on other days (including weekends and school breaks)
• Reimbursement for a second snack in lieu of a meal is allowable

• One or two meal services per day
• Congregate, on-site feeding for all meal services with option for one fruit, vegetable, or grain item to be taken off-site

• Open and closed enrolled sites: claim any two meals and/or snacks, except lunch and supper, on the same day
• Camps and migrant sites: may claim up to three meals per day
• Rural areas with no congregate meal service available may have the option of a non-congregate meal service

• Meals and snacks must be served after school on school days; schools that meet USDA’s definition of expanded learning time may serve before the final bell (CACFP 01-2011-Rev)
• No other restrictions on order, time, or spacing

• A minimum of one hour must elapse between the end of one meal service and the start of another
• State agencies may approve meals served outside of service times if unanticipated events occur outside of sponsors’ control
• Meals claimed as breakfast must be served at or close to the beginning of the day

• Supplied by sponsor through a vendor
• Prepared and/or delivered by sponsor

• Updated CACFP meal standards took effect on October 1, 2017
• Offer versus serve (OVS) is permitted for all meals (not snacks) provided by any sponsor or site
• Consists of 5 food components (grains, meats/meat alternates, fruits, vegetables and fluid milk)

See Appendix A for meal patterns

• Offer versus serve (OVS) is permitted for meals (not snacks) provided by SFA sponsors only
• May be approved to follow age-appropriate CACFP meal patterns if desired; must follow CACFP infant meal pattern if approved to serve infants
• Consists of 4 food components (grains/breads, vegetables/fruits, milk, meats/meat alternates)

• Allowed as a meat alternate. Must contain 5 grams of protein per 1.0 ounce equivalent (¼ cup or 2.2 ounces by weight)
• Creditable tofu include firm and extra firm only

• Must contain no more than 23 grams of total sugar per 6 ounces
• 4 ounces or 1⁄2 cup of yogurt may credit as 1 ounce of the meat/ meat alternate component
• Soy yogurt is creditable as long as it follows the sugar guidelines

• May count towards no more than half of the vegetable/fruit requirement at lunch and supper
• Juice can credit as the entire vegetable/fruit component at breakfast and snack

Exceptions

• Dried fruit credit as twice the amount served (¼ cup dried fruit = ½ cup fruit serving)
• Raw leafy greens credit for half the amount served (1 cup of raw leafy greens = ½ cup vegetable serving)
• Cooked leafy greens such as sautéed spinach are credited by volume as served (½ cup of cooked spinach = ½ cup of vegetables)

You may serve two vegetables at lunch and supper instead of a fruit and a vegetable, but they may not be from the same subgroup.

• All fruits and vegetables are credited based on volume served (1/4 cup dried fruit = 1/4 cup fruit & 1/2 cup spinach = 1/2 cup vegetable)
• Exception with tomato paste and tomato puree, which credit based on yields found in the Food Buying Guide for Child Nutrition Programs
• Serving two forms of the same fruit or vegetable in the same meal is not allowable. The two vegetables and/or fruit served at lunch and supper meals must be different from each other.

• One-year-olds can be served unflavored whole milk
• 2-5-year-olds can be served unflavored fat-free or low-fat milk
• 6-year-olds and older can be served unflavored or flavored low-fat or fat-free milk

• Prohibited for children 0-5 years old
• Must be low-fat or fat-free when served to children 6 years old and older

• When serving children, non-dairy beverages that are nutritionally equivalent (defined by regulation) to cow’s milk may be served to non-disabled participants with medical or special dietary needs; must be requested in writing by a parent/guardian
• Breastmilk may be served in lieu of fluid milk; a written request is not required
• Water must be offered throughout the day, but is not reimbursable

• Non-dairy beverages that are nutritionally equivalent to cow’s milk may only be serve in place of fluid milk when it is supported by a medical statement signed by a licensed physician or health care professional recognized by the State
• It is recommended that water be offered throughout the day

• At lunch or supper, participants must select at least 3 food components out of the 5 food components offered
• At breakfast, at least 4 food items must be offered and participants must select 3 items
• Not allowed in other CACFP settings

• Allowed at all SFSP sites, regardless of location type or sponsorship
• At least the following 5 food items at lunch and supper meals must be offered (1 serving of meat/meat alternate, 2 different servings of fruit and/or vegetable, 1 serving of grains and 1 serving of fluid milk) and children must select 3 food components
• At breakfast, at least 4 food items must be offered and children must select 3 items

• Sponsors must visit new sites, sites with operational problems in year prior, and any site where state agency deems necessary during the first week of operation. Sponsors that manage more than 10 sites have a one-week extension and must visit these sites in the first two weeks of operation
• Food service reviews (which must still be conducted within the first four weeks of operation) for all sites and site visits can occur at the same time

• Within first four weeks for new sites
• Three reviews per year
• At least two must be unannounced
• At least one unannounced review must include observation of a meal service
• No more than 6 months may elapse between reviews
• Review averaging may be employed

• At least once during first four weeks of site operation each summer
• “Reasonable” monitoring after first review, based on operations
• Food service reviews and site visits can occur at the same time

• All children and teens through age 18
• Persons with disabilities regardless of age

• Public School Food Authority (SFA)
• Private non-profit school
• State or local government agency
• Private non-profit organization

• Public or private non-profit colleges or universities participating in National Youth Sports Programs (NYSP)
• Public or private non-profit camps

• Provide year-round service to community (except NYSP sponsors)
• State Agencies may grant exceptions to sponsors of migrant sites and residential camps

• Affiliated (share sponsor’s legal identity)
• Unaffiliated (separate legal entity from sponsor)

• Open/open restricted
• Closed enrolled
• Camp
• Migrant
• NYSP (National Youth Sports Program)

• Located within attendance zone of public elementary, middle, or high school with ≥50% eligible for free and reduced-price meals
• Eligibility determination is valid for 5 years

• Located within census block group (CBG) or tract with ≥50% FARM eligible. CBGs with 40-50% FARM eligible may be paired with up to two adjacent CBGs that are ≥50% FARM eligible to confer eligibility over the entire area (SFSP 03-2017). See No Kid Hungry’s Averaged Area Eligibility Map

Closed enrolled and camp sites do not need to be in eligible areas but must serve children eligible for free and reduced-price school meals. Income eligibility forms may be collected at closed enrolled sites, or school or census data can be used to determine the ≥50% eligibility threshold

• After school hours
• On weekends, holidays, or breaks
• During unanticipated closures Year-round in area of year-round school

• During summer break
• During vacation breaks for year-round schools
• During unanticipated closures during the regular school year