This final rule amends the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) regulations by lowering the minimum identified student percentage (ISP) from 40 percent to 25 percent.
To help schools deal with supply chain challenges and rising food prices, USDA is providing nearly $1.3 billion in Supply Chain Assistance funds for states and territories to purchase domestic foods for their meal programs.
This funding opportunity will support research projects to better understand and generate information related to the school foodservice workforce focused on dimensions such as worker satisfaction, workforce experience, and training and development.
Comparison table for CEP proposed rule: current requirements vs. proposed changes.
The purpose of this memorandum is to provide guidance to state agencies and school food authorities on the paid lunch equity requirements for school year 2023-24. It explains the exemption provided in the Consolidated Appropriations Act 2023 and provides guidance for SFAs that do not qualify for the exemption, including those who may be returning to PLE requirements for the first time in a few years.
This rulemaking proposes to expand access to the Community Eligibility Provision by lowering the minimum identified student percentage participation threshold from 40 percent to 25 percent, which would give states and schools greater flexibility to choose to invest non-federal funds to offer no-cost meals to all enrolled students.
For children to grow and reach their full potential, it is critical that they have access to nutritious foods and develop lifelong healthy dietary habits.
The School Food System Transformation Challenge Sub-Grants described in this RFA were created to focus efforts to stimulate innovation in strengthening the availability of and access to nutritious food products in the K-12 school food marketplace.
FNS will award one cooperative agreement for the administration and management of the Healthy Meals Incentives Recognition Awards and Sub-Grants to school food authorities.
Frequently Asked Questions about the Farm to School Grant