On April 25, 2024, FNS published the final rule, Child Nutrition Programs: Meal Patterns Consistent With the 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. This rule includes minor updates to the Child and Adult Care Food Program and Summer Food Service Program to better align Child Nutrition Program requirements. These updates represent continued progress toward supporting the nutrition quality of school meals, strengthening the Child Nutrition Programs, and advancing USDA’s commitment to nutrition security.
This memorandum provides notice to child nutrition program operators regarding Sections 739, 747, 748, 769, and 770 of Division B of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2024, enacted on March 9, 2024. This memorandum applies to state agencies administering, and local organizations operating, the federal CNPs.
Questions and answers regarding why the SFSP is important and how it operates.
Tribal nations, state agencies, site sponsors, and program operators can use the following resources to help administer the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) SUN Meals or SUN Meals To-Go (non-congregate) options.
Provisions in the final rule that could impact CACFP and/or SFSP.
Provides an overview and step-by-step process for how to complete the meal claim validation process. This memorandum includes two attachments. Attachment 1 provides a flow chart on conducting a meal claim validation. Attachment 2 provides an example.
FNS published this recorded webinar on Feb. 28, 2024 for state agencies. The webinar includes a summary of the new memos released in Sept. 2023 and goes into detail about best practices for unused reimbursements and site proximity.
This guidance updates previously issued questions and answers to clarify the rural non-congregate summer meals option established through the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023, and codified through the interim final rulemaking, Establishing the Summer EBT Program and Rural Non-congregate Option in the Summer Meal Programs.
This rulemaking proposes important modifications to make the application of serious deficiency procedures in the Child and Adult Care Food Program and Summer Food Service Program consistent, effective, and in line with current requirements under the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act.
The purpose of this memorandum is to clarify the new criteria states must consider when determining which SFSP sites require pre-approval visits. The IFR requires state agencies to develop a process to determine which sites need pre-approval visits and must consider sites that are new to non- congregate. States are not required to visit each site that is new to operating non-congregate meal service.