1. Welcome to CACFP Nutrition Training!
Child Care Connections
Serving Columbia, Greene & Ulster Counties
A Program of Family of Woodstock, Inc.

2. WHO WE ARE CACFP = Child and Adult Care Food Program.
Family of Woodstock Inc., Child Care Connections is your CACFP sponsor agency.
CACFP is managed and monitored in New York State by the NYS Department of Health.
CACFP is a federal subsidy (monetary assistance) for Child Care Providers provided by the USDA.

3. THE PROGRAM BASICS Breakfast AM Snack Lunch PM Snack Dinner
CACFP recognizes 6 different meal types:
Breakfast
AM Snack
Lunch
PM Snack
Dinner
Evening Snack

4. BASIC RULES You can be reimbursed for up to: Common meal combinations:
AM Snack, Lunch, Dinner OR Breakfast, Lunch, PM Snack or Breakfast, PM Snack, Dinner
Two meals and one snack OR
Two snacks and one meal
There must be a minimum of 2 hours between meals and snacks.

5. MEAL TIME EXAMPLES Breakfast 7:00am AM Snack 9:00am Lunch 12:30pm
PM Snack 3:00pm
Dinner 5:30pm
Evening Snack 7:30pm

6. LETS TALK FOOD! There are 5 categories under CACFP:
Grains (breads/cereal/pasta/rice)
Fruits
Vegetables
Meats/Meat Alternatives
Milk (formula/breast milk/whole/1% Skim)
NOTE: For CACFP guidelines, potato is counted as a vegetable.

7. WHICH MILK CAN I SERVE?
Milk must be served at breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Children age 1 to 2 must be offered WHOLE milk.
Children age 2 and up must be offered 1% or skim.
If you have children in both age groups, you must offer both kinds of milk.
Day cares that provide kosher meals may serve milk separately from meals that include a meat component.
You may serve soy milk if the parent submits a written request.

8. SOY MILK There are 5 soy milk brands accepted by CACFP:
8th Continent Soy Milk
Pacific Northern Ultra Soy Milk
Pacific Northern Ultra Soy Milk, Vanilla
Kikkoman Pearl Organic Soymilk Smart Creamy Vanilla
Kikkoman Pearl Organic Soymilk Smart Chocolate
Tip: Children don’t like the taste of 1% cow milk?
Try Skim Plus or Over the Moon

9. MEAT ALTERNATIVES Examples of meat alternatives: Cheese Yogurt
Peanut Butter
Eggs
Beans- can be considered meat or vegetable, but not at the same meal!

10. Now that we know the FOUR Categories, Let’s discuss what are creditable meals and snacks under CACFP guidelines

11. BRE AKFAST Reimbursement amount: Tier I $1.31 per child/per day
You need 3 components for a creditable Breakfast:
Grain (cereal/bread/other)
Fruit/Vegetable
Milk
Examples
Pancakes
Sliced Bananas
Milk
Reimbursement amount:
Tier I $1.31 per child/per day
Tier II $0.48 per child/per day
(Rates valid through June 30, 2018)

12. LUNCH OR DINNER Reimbursement amount: Tier I $2.46 per child/per day
You will need 5 components:
Grain (rice/pasta/bread)
Meat/Meat Alternative
Vegetable
Fruit or Vegetable
Milk
Examples
Baked Chicken
Rice
Sweet Peas
Grapes
Milk
Reimbursement amount:
Tier I $2.46 per child/per day
Tier II $1.48 per child/per day
(Rates valid through June 30, 2018)

13. SNACKS You must include 2 of the 4 food categories
You can serve 100% juice! (Only one serving a day)
One of the components must be a liquid
If the 2 components selected are both solids, you must add water.
Water is NOT counted as a meal component!
Reimbursement amount:
Tier I $0.73 per child/per day
Tier II $0.20 per child/per day
(Rates valid through June 30, 2018)
Examples
Bagel and 100% Grape juice
Bread, cheese and water
Hot cereal with milk
Grapes, breadsticks, and water
Crackers and 100% apple juice

14. BREAKING DOWN A MEAL
Separate your meals into individual components.
Example: Pizza
Pizza sauce = Vegetable component
Pizza crust = Grain Component
Cheese = Meat component
(Do the same for spaghetti, soups, etc.)
NOTE: Up to 3 meal components can be counted if the recipe is homemade and includes enough of each ingredient to be considered as a serving.
*For combination meals only 3 components can be counted. You must always serve at least one component on the side in addition to the combination meal. For the example above, you would serve the second fruit/veggie component on the side to make it creditable.*

15. SERVING RESTRICTIONS
Fried Vegetables may not be served more than once a week.
Sweet grains/cereals (Ex: cookies, granola, frosted flakes) are not creditable. *The only creditable sweet grains are animal crackers and graham crackers.*
Processed meats (Ex: hot dogs, chicken nuggets) may not be served more than twice a week.
Lettuce and tomato on a sandwich or hamburger count as ONE serving of vegetables.
You may not serve THE SAME meal twice in one day, but you may serve two SIMILAR meals.

16. CLAIMING INFANTS Infants are children 6 weeks to 1 year old.
Until the child is 6 months old, you may get reimbursed even if the parents are providing the breast milk or formula.
When an infant is 6-12 months old, you must provide at least one component of each meal/snack (as the child becomes developmentally ready) in order to receive reimbursement.
At 6-12 months you must serve breast milk or formula, a cereal or protein, and a fruit or vegetable for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
At 6-12 months snack components include breast milk or formula, a fruit or vegetable and a grain such as an infant cereal, breakfast cereal, cracker or whole grain/enriched bread.

17. THINGS TO REMEMBER
You must serve at least one whole grain rich (WGR) item once a day! You must mark it down on your menu by writing WGR next to the item.
You will never be penalized for serving too much food- only for serving too little.
Your job is to OFFER nutritious food to children.

18. WHO CAN YOU CLAIM?
All children enrolled in your day care between the ages of 6 weeks and 13 years are eligible to participate in the food program.
You may be able claim your own/foster children as long as there are other day care children present for the meal.
After school children who normally attend in the afternoons can be claimed all day when school is closed. Parents need to check the box on the enrollment form.
The meal schedule needs to make sense for children attending all day.

19. MAXIMIZE YOUR REIMBURSEMENT
Save time by only recording the three meals you can claim (even if you serve more meals!)
Thrifty shopping - use circulars and don’t buy fruit out of season.
Pay attention to serving sizes - serve children what they can eat.
Save time by planning menus ahead of time.
Multi-options - you can claim after school children for different meals than full timers.

20. EXAMPLE OF A MULTI-OPTION
Breakfast at 7:00am – school aged children
AM Snack at 9:00am – full-timers
Lunch at 12:00pm – full-timers
PM Snack at 3:30pm – after-schoolers
Dinner at 5:00pm – everyone
For this example, the after-schoolers eat two meals and one snack, and the full-timers eat two meals and one snack.

21. SUBMITTING YOUR CLAIM Claims are submitted once a month. EXAMPLE
You must submit menus AND attendance.
Submit by the fourth day of the following month to be on time.
Your first claim will have a processing period of days.
Forms can be submitted electronically through or kept on paper and mailed/faxed to the office.
EXAMPLE
You start the CACFP program on Oct. 12th
You submit your first claim on Nov 1st
This first claim will include all claimed meals from Oct. 12th to Oct. 31st

22. CHILD ENROLLMENT FORMS
Every child in your care needs an enrollment form, completed, signed and dated by the parent to be eligible.
Enrollment forms must be mailed/faxed to the office BEFORE you submit your monthly claim (keep a copy for your records).
ALL CHILDREN IN YOUR CARE MUST BE ENROLLED IN THE FOOD PROGRAM.

23. MONITORING VISITS
A monitor will visit your daycare 4 times during your first year. Monitors must complete a minimum of 3 unannounced visits every year.
A monitor must observe a meal at least once a year.
During visits, monitors will ask to see your menus & attendance. You must have records updated until the day before the visit.
During visits, monitors will take down the names and ages of the children present. Review of day care registration information (blue cards) may be conducted.

24. DURING THE VISIT…
During visits, monitors will observe the meal you are serving. If the monitor arrives after the children have eaten, you may be asked to show leftovers or dirty dishes.
Monitors will also be on the lookout for health and safety violations.
Visits are usually unannounced and during business hours.
When monitors attempt a visit, they will ring your doorbell and knock on your door. If you do not answer, they will call every phone number that Child Care Connections has on file for you.
Please report your closures and field trips in advance to help us avoid sending monitors when you aren’t home.

25. YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR…
Taking 1 hour of CACFP nutrition training a year, and taking the CACFP Civil Rights training every year.
If your day care will be closed, you must report this closure to Child Care Connections office.
When you will be away from the day care (ex. going on a field trip with the children), you must leave a sign in your door/window or report it to Child Care Connections.

26. DISALLOWANCES
A disallowance means that you have not been reimbursed for a particular meal.
You are disallowed for not following a CACFP or Child Care Connections guideline.
For example:
Not keeping your menus and attendance current and up to date.
Not serving a creditable meal or snack.
Not submitting a new child's enrollment form.

27. QUESTIONS? CONTACT US! Phone: (845) 331-7080 (518)822-1944
Fax: (848) (518)
Contact us for further information.
Mail:
Child Care Connections Child Care Connections
PO Box Fairview Ave
Kingston NY Suite 914, 2nd floor
Hudson, NY 12534