The U.S. Department of Agriculture is asking states and food service companies, with the support of school food authorities, to pledge to make school meals and snack programs healthier.
For fiscal year 2026, we will provide up to $4 million for a competitive cooperative agreement to a government or nonprofit entity to carry out a Healthy Fluid Milk Incentive project.
This memorandum is a reminder to state agencies and local educational agencies that the statutory deadline to elect the Community Eligibility Provision for the following school year is June 30. This memorandum also provides a reminder of the annual CEP notification and publication requirements.
The primary purpose of the HFMI project is to develop and test methods to increase the purchase and consumption of qualifying fluid milk by SNAP households by providing them with an incentive at the point of purchase at authorized retailer locations.
Millions of children participate in the School Breakfast Program (SBP) every day – but millions more children are still missing out! These resources can help program operators discover ideas to increase participation in school breakfast programs and help administrators, teachers, students, and families learn about the benefits of participating in the SBP.
The primary purpose of the HFMI project is to develop and test methods to increase the purchase and consumption of qualifying fluid milk by SNAP households by providing them an incentive at the point of purchase at authorized retailer locations.
This map contains links to state-specific information on local educational agencies and schools that may be eligible to elect the Community Eligibility Provision.
A webinar for state agency and school food authority staff focused on the community eligibility provision.
The Community Eligibility Provision is a National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program meal service option that allows schools and school districts located in high poverty areas to offer breakfast and lunch at no cost to all enrolled students.
A final rule, Child Nutrition Programs: Community Eligibility Provision-Increasing Options for Schools (88 FR 65778), was published on Sept. 26, 2023, with an effective date of Oct. 26, 2023, that established the 25 percent minimum ISP threshold. As a result, more students, households, and schools have the opportunity to experience CEP’s benefits, such as increasing access to school meals at no cost, eliminating unpaid meal charges, minimizing stigma, and streamlining meal service operations.