Meal Patterns
USDA revised the CACFP meal patterns to ensure children and adults have access to healthy, balanced meals throughout the day. The changes made were based on the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, scientific recommendations from the National Academy of Medicine, stakeholder input, and cost and practical considerations. Under the revised meal patterns, meals served will include more whole grains, less saturated fat, a greater variety of fruits and vegetables, and less added sugar.
USDA has updated their CACFP Nutrition Standards web page with great resources on the current meal pattern.
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Milk and Milk Substitutes
- CACFP Milk Calculator (XLSX, 29 KB)
- Non-Dairy Tool - The CACFP Non-Dairy Tool is currently unavailable. It is being updated to reflect the new FDA Daily Values (DVs), which go into effect July 26, 2020. Some companies are already using the new percentages on their package labels, which results in inaccurate values when nutrients are entered in the Non-Dairy Tool. Please send any questions related to allowable non-dairy beverages to the CACFP training team. We are happy to research any specific products to see if they meet the guidelines for non-dairy beverages.
- Potentially Allowable Non-Dairy Beverages
USDA Policy Memos Related to the Meal Patterns
- Crediting Tofu and Soy Yogurt Products in the CACFP
- Feeding Infants and Meal Pattern Requirements in the CACFP
- Grain Requirements in the CACFP
- Offer Versus Serve and Family Style Meals in the CACFP
- Questions and Answers on the Updated Meal Pattern Requirements for the CACFP (PDF, 252 KB)
- Transition Period for the Updated CACFP Meal Patterns
- Vegetable and Fruit Requirements in the CACFP, Q&A (PDF, 91 KB)
Meal Patterns (Effective October 1, 2017)
Meal Pattern Menu Checklists
Menu Planning Tools
- Adult Weekly Menu Planning Tool (DOCX, 25 KB)
- Child Weekly Menu Planning Tool (DOCX, 27 KB)
- Infant Weekly Menu Planning Tool (DOCX, 28 KB)
Recursos en Español
The USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service is pleased to announce the release of CACFP Meal Pattern Training Tools in Spanish.
¡Nuevos recursos para la capacitación en el patrón de alimentación del CACFP en español!
Infografía
- Desarrollando un futuro más saludable con el CACFP
Hojas de capacitación
- Elija yogures con bajo contenido de azúcares añadidas
- Elija cereales para el desayuno bajos en azúcares añadidas
- Servir leche en el CACFP
Estos recursos pueden usarse para capacitar proveedores, operadores, planificadores de menú y otros en el cumplimento con los patrones de alimentación actualizados del CACFP que entran en efecto el 1ro de octubre de 2017.
Revisa todos estos nuevos recursos. Disponibles en inglés y en español.
Last Modified: January 30, 2019