Alaska Department of Education and Early Development

2024-01 CACFP Bulletin

Alaska Department of Education & Early Development sent this bulletin at 11/07/2023 11:04 AM AKST

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Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP)

2024 - 01

Alaska Department of Education and Early Development
Division of Finance and Support Services
Child Nutrition Programs
P.O. Box 110500
Juneau, AK 99811

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USDA Policy, Information, and Implementation Memos

Sponsoring organizations and institutions are required by regulation to keep Bulletins, Instructions, and USDA Policy Memorandums for reference and to apply immediately the appropriate instruction to agency programs. Please call Child Nutrition Programs if you need further clarification.

USDA Policy Memo 11-2023 Feeding Infants and Meal Pattern Requirements in the Child and Adult Care Food Program; Questions and Answers (Revised Sept 2023)

This memorandum supersedes CACFP 02-2018: Feeding Infants and Meal Pattern Requirements in the Child and Adult Care Food Program; Questions and Answers, October 19, 2017. This provides updated guidance on feeding infants and the infant meal pattern requirements in the CACFP. It incorporates updated breastmilk storage recommendations, infant formula food safety considerations, and information on crediting grains in ounce equivalents.

USDA Policy Memo 1-2024 Clarification of Allowable Flexibilities for Child Nutrition Programs Experiencing Milk Supply Shortages

This memorandum provides State agencies with information about existing authority related to schools and other CN program operators experiencing inadequate milk supply. Under current Program regulations found at 7 CFR 210.10(d)(2), 220.8(d), 225.16(f)(6), and 226.20(e)(1), State agencies may allow Program operators experiencing milk supply shortages to serve meals during an emergency period with an alternate form of fluid milk or without fluid milk. Because this is an existing regulatory flexibility, a waiver is not required for State agencies to exercise this authority.

Please continue to monitor the CNPWeb for any policy memos, additional information, or program guidance at the Child Nutrition Programs website.

Additional Topics

Fiscal Year 2024 CACFP & SFSP Area Eligibility Now Available

The 2024 Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) and Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) participant area eligibility data are now available.

At the start of every fiscal year, the USDA Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) releases a special tabulation of data provided by the Census Bureau for CACFP and SFSP that establishes area eligibility in the CACFP and SFSP. These data are effective as of Oct. 1, 2023.

The FNS mapping tools have been updated to reflect the new data. The entire data set is available for download on FNS' open data site. Please note that the map works best when opened in Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox.

To learn more about using census data for establishing area eligibility for CACFP and SFSP, please see our policy memorandum SP 08-2017, CACFP 04-2017, SFSP 03-2017, Area Eligibility in Child Nutrition Programs, issued Dec. 1, 2016.

FY2024 Annual Renewal & Submitting October Claims

Thank you for your patience as we work through our annual renewal and application process. Please refer to the Renewal Document for specific deadlines.

If you have been approved for the program year and you have already submitted your NPFS report, you are welcome to submit your October 2023 claim. Responsible program staff who are new to the program or who need a refresher on to how to submit claims in CNP Web can download and review the attached file.

New CACFP Coordinator

Following Ann-Marie Martin's retirement after 17 years with the CNP team, Chris Mariano has moved into the CACFP Coordinator position. Chris previously held the SFSP Specialist position, and prior to that, worked as part of the Department of Education & Early Development's Division of Innovation & Education Excellence (IEE). She will continue to be assisted by Jennifer Cherian. Chris and Jennifer look forward to working with you and supporting you as you serve nutritious meals to those in your care.

Resources

New Nibbles for Health Parent Newsletters

USDA's Team Nutrition offers these colorful and engaging newsletters for parents and guardians of young children (3 to 5-year-olds). They are available in both English and Spanish, and can be shared by CACFP providers to parents/guardians to communicate information about popular nutrition topics. Three new newsletters focus on:

New Food Buying Guide for CNP Training Modules

Team Nutrition has released two new training modules featuring the Food Buying Guide for Child Nutrition Programs (FBG):

Module 4: Exhibit A Grains Tool
Module 5: FBG Calculator

These modules provide an in-depth look at each tool (which are available on the FBG Interactive Web-Based Tool and Mobile App) and contain interactive knowledge checks to assist the learner. These modules and other trainings such as webinar recordings can be accessed on the Food Buying Guide for Child Nutrition Programs: Training Resources.

You can check out Team Nutrition’s other resources for CACFP at https://www.fns.usda.gov/tn/child-care-organization.

Team Nutrition Resources

CACFP Meal Pattern Training Tools
- CACFP Meal Pattern Training Worksheets
  - Serving Snacks in the CACFP training worksheet [English] [Spanish]
  - Serving Milk in the CACFP training worksheet [English] [Spanish]
  - Choose Yogurts That Are Lower in Sugar training worksheet [English] [Spanish]
  - Choose Breakfast Cereals That Are Lower in Sugar training worksheet [English] [Spanish]
  - Grain-Based Desserts in the CACFP training worksheet [English] [Spanish]
- CACFP Grains Oz Eq Resources
Crediting Handbook for the Child and Adult Care Food Program
Food Buying Guide for Child Nutrition Programs
CACFP Halftime: Thirty on Thursdays Training Webinar Series
Team Nutrition Homepage

Program Manager
- Gavin Northey (907) 465-8708

Program Coordinator (USDA Foods, TEFAP, FFVP)
- Sue Lampert: (907) 465-8710

Program Coordinator (NSLP)
- Tonia Parfitt: (907) 465-1080

Program Coordinator (CACFP)
- Chris Mariano: (907) 465-4788

Grants Administrator
- Carole Baker: (907) 465-2860

Acting Program Specialist (SFSP)
- Jennifer Cherian: (907) 465-4969

Program Specialist (School Wellness)
- Waverli Stowe (907) 465-8719

Education Program Associate II (Special Milk Program)
- Debbie Soto: (907) 465-8712

Education Program Assistant (USDA Foods, TEFAP)
- Tony Warren: (907) 465-3629

Education Program Assistant (CACFP & SFSP)
- Jennifer Cherian: (907) 465-4969
Pandemic EBT Specialist
- Tonia Parfitt: (907) 465-1080

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