What is The Child and Adult Care Food Program?

The CACFP is about nutritious food:
The Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) is about nutritious foods.  It helps make it possible for family child-care providers to provide a variety of nutritious foods like fresh fruits and vegetables, high quality protein, fresh dairy products, whole grain and enriched breads and cereals.  The program is designed to enable you to feed the best foods possible to the children in your care.  The Child and Adult Care Food Program enables children to experience a variety of nutritious foods as well as encouraging healthy eating habits while promoting nutritional education for children.

The CACFP is about learning:
To help you maximize the benefits of this program and to help providers understand quality nutrition, Action for Children offers training in program requirements, nutritious foods, and tips on how to teach children good eating habits.  Additionally, we help you plan nutritious meals and snacks and many other useful topics.  We ask that you attend a two hour workshop each year.

The CACFP is about controlling costs:
The Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) is a reimbursement program.  It reimburses family child-care home providers for as many as two meals and one snack, or two snacks and one meal, per child, per day.  United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) meal pattern requirements must be met and all required paperwork must be completed in a timely manner. Rates for reimbursement, which may vary according to a provider’s location, are set by the USDA and change annually in July.  Providers can be reimbursed as much as $800.00 per child, per year. Participants are able to keep their child care costs lower because of the reimbursements they receive.  Food costs are not passed on to parents, which keeps your fees affordable.  For current information about reimbursement rates, please visit the USDA website at http://www.fns.usda.gov/cnd/care/ProgramBasics/Rates/2005HomesContig.htm

The Child and Adult Care Food Program is funded by the United States Department of Agriculture and, in Ohio, is administered by the Department of Education, Child Nutrition Services.  Currently 18 sponsors, including Action for Children, implement the program in Ohio. 

What are the Benefits of the Program? 

• Children are more likely to get balanced meals in homes that participate in the Child and Adult Care Food Program
• Family child-care providers participate in special training meetings to help them feed children well
• Children learn good eating habits that will last them a lifetime
• Providers receive monies that help them buy these nutritious foods
• Parents aren’t asked to pay extra for nutritious meals and snacks and child care fees are kept marketable  
• Providers have the option of having their food reimbursement check direct deposited in their bank account

How Does the Program Work? 

1. The provider signs an agreement with Action for Children to participate
2. Parents enroll their children in the program
3. Providers keep records of the foods they serve, meeting program guidelines, and records of who they serve
4. These records are submitted monthly to Action for Children for reimbursement 

What Kind of Foods are Served?
Participants must follow the USDA program guidelines for types of foods at each meal and quantities of food served for the age of the child being served.

Breakfast:  Milk, fruit or vegetable, bread or cereal

Snack:  A serving from any two different food groups

Lunch or Supper:  Milk, two servings of fruit or vegetables, a serving of meat/protein, a serving of bread, pasta or grain

The amount of food served will depend on the age of each child.

What is the Cost of the Program?
There is no cost to the parent or the family day-care provider for this program. This is like the School Lunch Program. It is paid for by the United States Department of Agriculture. The purpose is good food for young children.

Who can Participate? 
Family child care providers who are certified with Ohio Department of Job and Family Services in Franklin, Delaware, Fairfield, Licking, Madison, Pickaway, Union, or Marion counties are eligible.  Also providers who are registered with Action for Children are eligible, as are those in Crawford, Marion, Morrow, and Richland counties who are certified with Child Care Choices.

If you are interested in becoming a part of Action for Children’s Child and Adult Care Food Program, please feel free call us at 614-224-0222, ext. 217 or contact us at food@actionforchildren.org.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, gender, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, or marital or family status.  (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.)  Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA’s TARGET Center at (202)720-2600 (voice and TDD).

The CACFP is available to all eligible children without regard to race, color, national origin, sex, age or disability. 

To file a complaint of discrimination, write USDA Director, Office of Civil Rights, Room 326-W, Whitten Building, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, DC  20250-9410, or call 202-720-5964 (voice and TDD).  USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.