10/5/26 C.A.R.E. - Food Distribution Programs Newsletter

Washington Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction sent this bulletin at 10/06/2026 01:55 PM PDT

Food Distribution Program C.A.R.E.: Week of October 5, 2026

Update: USDA Direct Delivery (Commodities)
Update: Save the Date — 2027 USDA Food Show
Update: Join the Food Distribution Advisory Council
Update: Entitlement
Update: School Year (SY) 2027–28 W-Code Interest Survey
USDA Product of the Month
Washington Local Food (WaLF) Product of the Month
Important Dates to Remember

Update: USDA Direct Delivery (Commodities)

November orders open October 7 and close October 14 at 3 pm.

Note: The closing time for regular orders is now 3 pm.

Surplus orders open Thursday, October 15 at 1 pm for groups 1 and 2, 1:30 pm for group 3, and 2 pm for group 4.

Surplus closes Friday, October 16 at 4 pm.

Sponsors should notify the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) of changes to the delivery contact person or delivery address change by completing the Delivery Updates Form.

USDA Food Complaints

Resources

Upcoming Trainings

Basics of Operating School Meal Programs for Food Service

Date: October 28 and November 4

Time: 1–4 pm

Register

Update: Save the Date — 2027 USDA Food Show

OSPI is hosting a United States Department of Agriculture (USDA Foods) show for School Meal programs sponsors on Wednesday, February 3. The food show will include education sessions relevant to USDA Foods and a tasting event to sample USDA Foods available to order.

Registration opens in November.

Date: February 3, 2027

Update: Join the Food Distribution Advisory Council

Child Nutrition Services seeks Food Distribution Advisory Council members.

The Food Distribution Advisory Council is a voluntary, diverse group of sponsors from different geographic regions and size representation. The advisory council provides a forum for collaboration and understanding between OSPI and sponsors.

Interested? Complete this interest form

Questions? Email the Food Distribution inbox or call 360-688-0326.

Update: Entitlement

Food Distribution distributes entitlement several times during the school year based on the changes to the USDA meal rate and total lunch served reconciliation.

USDA released the 2026–27 meal rate of 0.4700 on August 2, 2026, a 0.02 increase from last school year. This calculation has been applied to accounts in CNPweb. The five percent that was held in January has also been included in the calculations.

Entitlement Calculation: Total Lunch Served x USDA Meal Rate = Entitlement

Questions? Email Sarah Davis or call 360-725-6215.

Update: School Year (SY) 2027–28 W-Code Interest Survey

W-Code Interest Survey

W-code products are bulk USDA Foods that are sent to processors to be processed into end products, such as chicken nuggets. OSPI has named these further processed items W-code products. The SY 2027–28 W-code Interest Survey allows sponsors to indicate products they would like added to the Washington state product list.

Complete the 2027–28 W-code Interest Survey by October 9. Responses received after this date may not be considered.

Items with the highest interest may be included in the SY 2027–28 Pre-order survey.

Interest Survey vs Pre-order Survey

Interest Survey

The Interest Survey informs OSPI which products sponsors are interested in and if those items should be added to the product list. If enough interest is expressed and orders meet sufficient quantities, products will become available on the Pre-order Survey.

Pre-order Survey

After interested items are chosen, sponsors must commit to ordering those items. The Pre-order Survey is a commitment to how much and which items sponsors plan to order in the upcoming school year.

Questions? Email the Food Distribution inbox or call 360-725-6204.

USDA Product of the Month

For October, OSPI is spotlighting USDA Foods item 100021 ‐ Cheese, Mozzarella, Shredded.

Product Description

This item is low moisture part skim shredded mozzarella cheese. This product is delivered frozen in a 30 pound case.

Crediting/Yield

One case yields 480 1‐ounce portions of shredded mozzarella cheese.
CN Crediting: 1 ounce shredded mozzarella cheese credits as 1 oz equivalent meat/meat alternate.

Culinary Tips and Recipes

Mozzarella cheese can be used as an ingredient with whole grain pasta dishes or as a topping for salad, eggs, or vegetables.
For culinary techniques and recipe ideas, visit the Institute of Child Nutrition or USDA’s Team Nutrition.

USDA Product Information Sheets provide basic product information, and the USDA Foods Database provides vendor-specific nutrition, allergen, and ingredient information.

Washington Local Food (WaLF) Product of the Month

OSPI is spotlighting butternut squash for the month of October.

Product Description: This product comes peeled, cubed, and frozen in a case of four five-pound packages.

Crediting and Yield: One five-pound package of cubed, peeled winter squash contains about 18.75 1/2-cup servings of cooked, peeled, cubed winter squash. One case yields about 93.75 servings.

CN Crediting

1/2 cup cooked, peeled, cubed winter squash credits as 1/2 cup red/orange vegetable.

Culinary Tips and Resources

Roast, steam, or sauté squash for use in soups, stews, casseroles, or grain bowls. Roast at 400°F for 20–25 minutes to bring out natural sweetness. Puree cooked squash for use in sauces, dips, or as a base for soups.

Recipe Ideas

Important Dates to Remember

October 7–14	October USDA Foods Regular Order Period
October 15–16	October USDA Foods Surplus Order Period

ALL STUDENTS PREPARED FOR POST-SECONDARY PATHWAYS, CAREERS, AND CIVIC ENGAGEMENT.

Led by State Superintendent Chris Reykdal, OSPI oversees K-12 public education in Washington state. Our mission is to provide funding, resources, tools, data and technical assistance that enable educators to ensure students succeed in our public schools, are prepared to access post-secondary training and education, and are equipped to thrive in their careers and lives.

ADA NOTIFICATION FOR OSPI CHILD NUTRITION SERVICES EVENTS
To arrange accommodations for persons with disabilities for OSPI Child Nutrition Services events, please contact the Child Nutrition Services Team at 360-725-6200, TTY 360-664-3631, or by email, child.nutrition@k12.wa.us at least three business days before the event. Please note that the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) does not require OSPI to take any action that would fundamentally alter the nature of its programs or services, or impose an undue financial or administrative burden.

This Institution is an Equal Opportunity Provider.

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This Institution is an Equal Opportunity Provider.