Future Regulations

The Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) has the broadest scope of all the USDA food and nutrition programs and serves people at all stages of the lifespan, from infants to the elderly. The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 required that the USDA update nutrition standards for CACFP. The Institute of Medicine (IOM) issued a report, “Child and Adult Care Food Program: Aligning Dietary Guidance for All” in 2011, providing guidance for nutrition requirements for various age groups in the program. In January 2015, the USDA FNS issued a draft rule with proposed science-based nutrition standards for meals provided through CACFP, based on the IOM report and aligned with the meal patterns of the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans.^[1] Once finalized, these new standards will be the first update to the program’s nutrition requirements since its creation in 1968.^[2]

[1] Child and Adult Care Food Program: Meal Pattern Revisions Related to the Healthy,Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010. January 9, 2015. http://www.fns.usda.gov/sites/default/files/CACFP_Meal_Pattern_Rule_010915 .pdf
[2] United States Department of Agriculture. Press Release. USDA Proposes New Science-BasedMeal Patterns for Child and Adult Care Food Program. January 9, 2015. http://www.fns.usda.gov/pressrelease/2015/fns-0001-15