Time to Train Your Staff on CACFP Requirements!
When you sponsor the Child and Adult Care Program (CACFP), training requirements must be met. You may recall that the person(s) responsible for oversight of the CACFP are required to attend CACFP Annual Training provided by OSPI Child Nutrition Services (CNS) each year.
But how does the staff at the center level receive the required training to meet the CACFP requirements each year?
Steps to Meet CACFP Training Requirements
- Update and verify contact information is in WINS.
- OSPI CNS uses WINS contact info to send important information to sponsors.
- Attend required Annual Trainings.
- Fiscal Year 2021–22 Annual Training
- Annual Civil Rights Training
- Ounce Equivalents (Oz. Eq.) Training
- Note: You will need a Moodle Account to access these trainings.
- Train the staff at the center level.
Questions? Please contact your CACFP Specialist or visit the CACFP Requirements and Materials webpage.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently released several nationwide waivers relating to the operation of the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) during School Year (SY) 21–22.
Important Information
- Local Education Agencies have the operational flexibility under the SSO for the full duration of SY 21–22 and may use SSO flexibilities during unanticipated school closures.
- For the purposes of these nationwide waivers, unanticipated school closures only occur when an entire school closes and instruction is not provided to children. If a school is offering virtual learning or a mix of in-person and virtual learning, the school is considered open, and these waivers do not apply.
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USDA Memos Released
Questions? Please contact your OSPI CNS Program Specialist.
Can you believe it is already October?? The time has come to implement Oz. Equivalents!
Make sure you are doing these things:
- Check your labels and compare grains served to the Grains Measuring Chart to ensure they meet requirements.
- Update your recipes to include the grains serving in ounce equivalents.
- Verify changes in your menus have been made to reflect necessary changes.
- Include Oz. Eq. training at regularly scheduled staff meeting
- This is a great time to remind staff of the requirement or can serve as an introduction to Oz. Eq. for newly hired staff.
- Share Oz. Eq. details with your teachers and other support staff so they are aware of the proper portion size to serve to their children.
- Check in with your Program Specialist if you have any questions about your menu or grain items you are serving.
About Ounce Equivalents
Ounce equivalents allow you to credit for the amount of grains that is in any given grain product. Many grain products have additional ingredients like oil, milk, and eggs that can increase the weight of the final products. Because of this, the amount of grains in a product can vary from item to item.
Consider a standard dinner roll and compare it to a waffle—while a dinner roll might be smaller than the waffle, the amount of creditable grain flour in the product might be the same because it is mostly grains, while waffles include other ingredients.
In addition, grain products may vary in sizes. Waffles and other grain items come in many different sizes with some crediting for far larger portions than the minimum.
Resources
Questions? Please contact your CACFP Specialist.
Happy Farm to CACFP Week!
OSPI celebrates the use of locally produced food in CACFP and thanks you for your efforts to include local foods and nutrition/agricultural enrichment activities into your program this week. In fact, we think you deserve a crown!
Try this veggie crown activity to engage kids and adults alike.
Use #WAFarmtoCACFP to share your stories throughout the week. Include #WAapplecrunch and #TasteWADay hashtags when sharing photos or videos from those events.
Want more ideas? OSPI’s new Farm to CACFP webpage has lots of great information about educational activities, purchasing local foods, and how to promote your efforts. Check it out and try offering more Farm to CACFP programming throughout the year, not just during Farm to CACFP Week!
To support school nutrition, child care, and adult care professionals' efforts to connect children and adults with nutritious meals throughout the COVID-19 pandemic USDA Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) established nationwide waivers to allow program flexibility for School Year 2021–22 (SY 21–22) and Fiscal Year 2022 (FY22).
Flexibility may be requested in circumstances where sponsors are experiencing food or labor shortages or altered facility operations due to COVID-19.
The CACFP Meal Distribution Plan (MDP) & Waiver Request Survey may be submitted for current program operation through September 30, 2022. Use this Checklist prior to beginning the survey. If you exit the survey before it is submitted, your progress will be lost.
The MDP Survey must be submitted to request the following flexibilities:
- Grab-and-Go Meal Service
- Off-site Monitoring
- Meal Pattern Flexibilities
More MDP Information
- Your MDP must be submitted and approved prior to utilizing available waivers granted by the USDA. Approval may be made retroactive in emergency circumstances when prior approval cannot be made.
- FNS expects schools and child care providers to use the flexibilities for only the duration and extent that they are needed.
- Waiver use will be approved on a case-by-case basis and only for a limited duration of time.
- Once you submit the MDP you will receive a confirmation email.
- Your program specialist will contact you regarding approval status of your organization's plan and waiver request(s).
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To request use of additional waivers or extensions for approved waivers, program operators should notify their program specialist and submit an additional MDP for approval.
Reference Sheets, FAQ's, and Other Resources
Questions? Please contact your CACFP Specialist.
During COVID-19 shortages, local procurement can help you minimize disruptions to program operations.
View the Procuring Local Foods During COVID-19 Shortages recorded webinar for more information on finding local farms, procurement and purchasing considerations, and more.
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