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Resource | Policy Full-Year Continuing Appropriations and Extensions Act, 2025: Effect on Child Nutrition Programs

This memorandum provides notice to child nutrition program operators regarding the Full-Year Continuing Appropriations and Extensions Act, 2025 (the 2025 Appropriations Act), March 15, 2025. This applies to state agencies administering, and local organizations operating, the USDA FNS child nutrition programs.

05/14/2025
Resource | Policy Using Federal Funds to Purchase Local Foods

The purpose of this memorandum is to remind schools, sponsors, and institutions participating in any USDA Child Nutrition Program, including the National School Lunch Program, School Breakfast Program, Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program, Special Milk Program for Children , Child and Adult Care Food Program, Summer Food Service Program, and the Seamless Summer Option , of the many ways they can purchase local foods to serve in program meals.

05/06/2025
Resource | Policy Buy American Accommodation Process for School Year 2025-26

This memorandum provides guidance on the Buy American accommodation process. This memorandum provides the state agency the ability to approve temporary relief for school food authorities that demonstrate they cannot meet the thresholds for non-domestic food purchases for school year 2025-26.

02/20/2025
Resource | Training and Outreach Revisions to Meal Patterns Consistent with the 2020-2025 DGAs – Buy American Provisions Webinar

This webinar reviewed the Buy American provision including information related to new regulations, the recently published memo, Buy American Provisions Related to the Final Rule Titled, Child Nutrition Programs: Meal Patterns Consistent With the 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, and the optional Buy American Exceptions tracker.

08/28/2024
Resource | Policy Memos Geographic Preference Expansion Related to the Final Rule - Child Nutrition Programs: Meal Patterns Consistent With the 2020-2025 DGAs

This memorandum provides a detailed explanation of the expanded geographic preference option. 

05/22/2024
Resource | Technical Assistance Food Buying Guide for Child Nutrition Programs

The Food Buying Guide for child nutrition programs has all of the current information in one manual to help you and your purchasing agent buy the right amount of food and the appropriate type of food for your program(s), and determine the specific contribution each food makes toward the meal pattern requirements.

07/11/2022
Resource | Policy Memos Updated Local Agency Procurement Review Tool for School Food Authorities for SY 2019-2020

This memorandum provides information on the updated template Local Agency Procurement Review Tool for state agencies to use, modify or develop in SY 2019-2020.

08/19/2019
Resource | Technical Assistance Buy American Factsheet

A resource for school meals program operators on the Buy American Provision. This provision safeguards the health and well-being of our Nation’s children and supports the U.S. economy, American farmers, and small and local agricultural businesses. The National School Lunch Act requires school food authorities (SFAs) to purchase, to the maximum extent practicable, domestic commodities or products.

05/30/2019
Resource | Policy Child Nutrition Programs Income Eligibility Guidelines (2019-2020)

This notice announces the Department's annual adjustments to the Income Eligibility Guidelines to be used in determining eligibility for free and reduced price meals and free milk for the period from July 1, 2019 through June 30, 2020.

03/20/2019
Resource | Policy Memos Market Basket Analysis when Procuring Program Goods and Modifying Contracted-For Product Lists

This memorandum provides guidance to state distributing agencies and recipient agencies on the use of market basket analysis in procuring processed end products for USDA Foods in Schools and commercial goods for the National School Lunch Program, School Breakfast Program, Summer Food Service Program, and Child and Adult Care Food Program. 

01/18/2018
Page updated: October 14, 2021