Nutrition Program Updates for the Week of May 20, 2019

department of education

Nutrition Program Updates for the Week of May 20, 2019

Each section contains updates relevant to those nutrition programs. You can jump to the section you're interested in by clicking the link.


All Nutrition Programs

Remember to Re-Subscribe to the Nutrition Program Bulletin by June 17!

The Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) is updating the bulletin subscriber list! Our goal with this update is to ensure we have up-to-date and accurate information for those who administer nutrition programs.

To continue receiving the bulletin, you must subscribe using the new Quick Subscribe link before June 17, 2019. After this date, only those who have subscribed via the Quick Subscribe link will receive the bulletin. 

Save the Date: Farm to Summer Week is July 15-18!

Farm to Summer week in Minnesota is July 15-18. More information about how your site can celebrate and be involved will be in the next bulletin. To learn more about Farm to Summer, visit USDA’s Farm to Summer website.

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New Food Yields in the Food Buying Guide!

New food yields for the following food items have been added to the Food Buying Guide (FBG) for Child Nutrition Programs  Interactive Web-Based Tool: surimi seafood, tempeh, coconut, popcorn, and hominy. Please see the following memos for guidance on these newly creditable food items:

  1. SP 08-2019, CACFP 02-2019, SFSP 02-2019 Update of Food Crediting in the Child Nutrition Programs
  2. SP 22-2019, CACFP 09-2019, SFSP 08-2019 Crediting Coconut, Hominy, Corn Masa, and Corn Flour in the Child Nutrition Programs and SP 26-2019
  3. SP 23-2019, CACFP 10-2019, SFSP 09-2019 Crediting Popcorn in the Child Nutrition Programs
  4. SP 24-2019, CACFP 11-2019, SFSP 10-2019 Crediting Surimi Seafood in the Child Nutrition Programs
  5. SP 25-2019, CACFP 12-2019, SFSP 11-2019 Crediting Tempeh in the Child Nutrition Programs

Check out these new food items on the Food Buying Guide for Child Nutrition Programs Interactive Web-Based Tool and the FBG Mobile App.

Have you downloaded the FBG Mobile App? Check to ensure you have the most current version of the app on your mobile devices!

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Child and Adult Care Food Programs

New Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) Resources 

CACFP Meal Pattern Charts Updated to Ounce Equivalents for Grains

The infant, child, and adult meal pattern charts for all CACFP sponsors have been updated to ounce equivalent information for grains and are available on the CACFP meal pattern webpage. These updates align the meal pattern charts with the USDA requirement to list ounce equivalencies for grains, which goes into effect on October 1, 2019. 

You can register for the live Ounce Equivalents webinar on June 17, 2019, to discuss information and resources on ounce equivalents with MDE staff.

Training Logs for CACFP by Type of Facility

The training logs for CACFP have been updated and are available on the CACFP training webpage. Use these updated logs of video trainings to document staff training during the enrollment process, new staff orientation, and throughout your annual program year. Select the training log that best represents your sponsor or site below:

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Upcoming CACFP Training Opportunities 

Infant Meal Pattern and Infant Feeding Workshop – June 12

This in-person workshop on the infant meal pattern and infant feeding is intended for infant room staff and other staff who need to understand the CACFP infant meal pattern requirements and feeding best practices. All attendees will receive a copy of the new Feeding Infants guide and a certificate of attendance.

  • June 12, 2019 (8:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m.) Lincoln Community Center, Mankato

Access further information and register for the in-person Infant Feeding workshop.


Ounce Equivalents Live Webinar – June 17

This live webinar provides tools, resources and information to correctly modify your food program documents and to train staff regarding ounce equivalents before October 1, 2019. This training will be helpful to all CACFP sponsors.

  • June 17, 2019 (1:30–2:30 p.m.)

Access further information and register for the Ounce Equivalent Webinar.


Upcoming CACFP Basic Trainings July 25

This in-person CACFP Basic Training provides an introduction to the CACFP program and is great for new center staff. Training date and location:

  • July 25, 2019 (8:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m.) Roseville

Access further information and registration for CACFP Basic Training.

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Food Distribution Program

2020 Distributor Selection

The deadline to select your USDA commodities distributor for School Year (SY) 2019-20 has passed. Your prompt attention to this matter is needed to prevent commodity delivery issues. 

If you are not in the bidding process, please go into the Cyber-Linked Interactive Child Nutrition System (CLiCS) 1 and make your selection. Not doing so could hinder the prompt and accurate delivery of your commodities for next year.  Sponsors who utilize a Food Service Management Company (FSMC) or have a contract for Vended Meals in place should work with that company to ensure this task is completed.

Please note a distributor change beginning in SY 2019-20:

  • Variety Foods is now S. Foods – Sioux Falls

These distributor changes have been made in CLiCS. To make your distributor choice in CLiCS 1 select: Food Distribution > Profile > “Green Customers” Tab > Click Dropdown: Select 2020 > Search > Click the “2020” Hyperlink > Select Distributor from the dropdown menu > Save.

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School Nutrition Programs

School Nutrition Back to School 2019 Training in August

The annual Back to School Essentials training will be held in six locations in Minnesota on August 13 and 14, 2019. Locations include: Thief River Falls, Fergus Falls, Mountain Iron, Sartell, Mankato and Roseville. Meal service basics will be covered on Tuesday, August 13, and the free and reduced-price process will be the topic for Wednesday, August 14. 

Morning refreshments will be available. There will be an hour break for lunch on your own. Registration is limited and will be on a first-come, first-served basis.

For more information and registration, select Back to School Essentials 2019.

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Have you Entered your 2019-20 Paid Lunch Prices in CLiCS?

The Paid Lunch Price reporting screen is now open in the Cyber-Linked Interactive Child Nutrition System (CLiCS). Each year MDE must report to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) every School Food Authority’s (SFAs) student paid lunch price for the current year.

In order to gather this data, we require that each SFA enter the data in CLiCs by close of business on September 30, 2019. Failure to report by this date may result in the delay of school nutrition program payments.

The Paid Lunch Price Reporting Instructions are available on the MDE website's CLiCS Claims and Reporting page.

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2019-20 Renewal Applications

The following renewal applications are now available to submit online in the Cyber-Linked Interactive Child Nutrition System (CLiCS) on or before June 10, 2019.

  • School Nutrition Program (SNP)
  • Federal Special Milk Program (SMP)
  • Minnesota Kindergarten Milk Program (MKMP)

Access CLiCS to renew your applications.

Refer to the Application Renewal Instructions for School Nutrition Programs 2019-20 and Milk Programs Application Renewal Instructions 2019-20 on the Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) – Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) website.

Required: Sponsors must ensure that the email address and contact information on the sponsor and site application(s) are current and accurate.

When an application renewal is approved for the 2019-20 program year, a CLiCS system-generated email confirming approval will be sent to the email address for the contact person listed on the sponsor application.

Contact the Applications Team with any questions at 651-582-8526, 1-800-366-8922 (Minnesota toll-free) or email mde.fns@state.mn.us. To facilitate our response, include your CLiCS sponsor identification (ID) number in all correspondence.

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Opportunity to Boost School Breakfast Program Participation – Deadline Extended to May 30, 2019

The Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) Team Nutrition Program is offering a unique opportunity for six high schools during School Year 2019-20. The schools which apply and are selected to participate will receive free technical assistance from a nutrition consultant to help them increase School Breakfast Program (SBP) participation. In order to be eligible, schools must participate in the SBP and serve grades 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, or 12. Participating in this program will help you generate new ideas for your breakfast program, build excitement, and increase participation.

You can learn more about this opportunity by reading the Information about Joining Team Breakfast document, posted on the MDE School Breakfast page. You can also indicate your interest in participating in Team Nutrition by filling out the Team Breakfast interest survey.

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Reminder: Community Eligibility Provision Application

Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) applications for School Year 2019-20 are due no later than June 28, 2019.

The Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) allows eligible districts and/or schools in low-income areas to provide school lunches and breakfasts at no charge to all students, using simplified meal counting and claiming procedures. More information about CEP and the application process is available on the CEP webpage.

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Paid Lunch Equity (PLE) Tool SY2019-20 Now Available

USDA released the school year (SY) 2019-20 Paid Lunch Equity Tool to use when evaluating SY 2019-20 paid lunch prices. Memo SP 27-2019 outlines the flexibility available to school food authorities (SFAs) when electing whether to use the USDA PLE tool for SY 2019-20. Any of the following is an acceptable reason for SFAs to elect not to use the USDA PLE tool:

  • SFA has a positive or zero balance in their nonprofit school food service account (NSFSA) as of December 31, 2018. SFAs that meet this condition are exempt from PLE requirements found at 7 CFR 210.14(e) for SY 2019-20. 
  • All SFA sites are participating in the Community Eligibility Provision
  • SFA has a SY 2019-20 average paid lunch price that will be $3.00 or greater.

If you will not be using the USDA PLE Tool to evaluate paid lunch prices for SY 2019-20 for any of these reasons, you must complete the following one-question School Nutrition USDA PLE Tool Survey.

If the survey is not complete, the PLE Tool will be required for evaluating paid lunch prices for SY 2019-20 and must be available upon request.

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