You are receiving this newsletter because you are enrolled in the WECA Food Program.
April 2022 | View as Webpage
Your Monthly News & Updates
Stay connected: Check out our current staff directory here.
National Days in April!
April 8th – National Empanada Day
Read The Empanadas that Abuela Made (Bertrand, 2003) Try making the empanada recipe with your child care children and for your family!
April 26th – National Pretzel Day!
Read Pretzel (Rey, 1944,) and have a snack that includes pretzels!
Thursday with Tom: A Night of Recognition and Thanks for Tom Copeland
Thursday, April 7th from 6:30-7:30 p.m.
Have you been impacted by Tom Copeland’s generous insights, articles, and answers to tricky tax questions?  Please join us for a special night with Tom to celebrate his upcoming retirement in May. We will be screening a short video telling Tom's story and opening the floor for you to share how Tom has positively impacted your family child care business. Join us for this special occasion and be sure to bring your best Tom story to share! 
 
Live interpretation for Spanish will be provided. 
Happy Anniversary! CACFP Anniversaries in April
We thank you for your commitment to serving healthy meals and snacks to the children in your care.

10 years – Amanda Meredith
15 years – Rebecca Bystrom
20 years – Paula Hoewisch
25 years – Jill Schetter
Congratulations to Our New Providers
We are pleased to welcome new providers to the WECA Food Program:
  • Pamela from Milwaukee
  • Ana from Milwaukee
  • Alaisha from Milwaukee
Celebrating WECA’s Week of the Young Child
Get ready for NAEYC’s 2022 Week of the Young Child celebration! Join us tomorrow through April 8th for our annual event celebrating young children. WECA is hosting virtual events and activities for everyone to enjoy: children, parents, providers, and business leaders. Visit WECA's social media channels for all the details!
2022 Nutrition Training
In-Person Home Visits Resume June 1st
Remember when your Area Coordinator came to your door? Those days are returning when we resume in-person home visits on June 1st.

If there are COVID-19 protocols you would like your Area Coordinator to observe, please call or email to let them know.

If you will be closed, you must notify your Area Coordinator before 7 a.m. on any day you will be closed or out with children. Leave a voicemail for your Area Coordinator.

A full listing of WECA Food Program Staff and their contact information is here.

Important reminders:
  • If your Area Coordinator attempts a visit and you are not available, that meal or snack service WILL be deducted. This is a federal regulation.
  • You agreed to be visited by representatives of WECA, DPI and USDA when you signed your Agreement with the Food Program. Refusing a visit can be grounds for termination.
Let's Cook! Wee Chefs - Big Results!
by Julie Giles, WECA Food Program Specialist
Our recipe(s) for March were Choose your Own Smoothie (p. 67).

My cute and savvy kitchen team whipped up Sunny Strawberry Kiwi Smoothies on a cold and rainy March morning.

You’ll be shocked – or not! – that I chose to make some substitutions: Instead of low-fat vanilla yogurt, we used whole milk plain Greek yogurt. By doing so, we met the sugar limits for yogurt on the CACFP, and our smoothie was thicker and richer.

We used 1% milk rather than skim, as it is what we drink, and I felt the extra fat might also help to produce a bit richer final product.

The boys worked hard slicing and chopping the already-washed fruit. Since my blender has limited power, the pieces of fruit needed to be small. The boys were good sports about their temporarily strawberry-dyed pink fingers! In hindsight, I should have outfitted my chefs in aprons, to prevent strawberry-dyed clothing (which I pre-treated so that that, too, would be temporary.)

We all love vanilla, so we agreed as a team to add a heaping teaspoon full. I was glad that we did, as our smoothie was not sweet, although still very fruity and tasty. The vanilla yogurt the recipe originally called for probably resulted in a much sweeter smoothie, but exceeding the 23g per 6 oz CACFP mandate for yogurt was something, of course, I was not willing to do. If we make this smoothie recipe again, I could suggest to my kitchen crew that we add a bit more vanilla or a hearty sprinkle of cinnamon or nutmeg to lend some additional sweetness.
Our Sunny Strawberry Kiwi Smoothie didn’t bring out the sun, but we were busy and happy in my kitchen slicing, dicing, whipping and concocting a tasty and healthy beverage to have with lunch (in addition to our serving of 1% milk.) And, we all had second helpings!
Cook With Us! 

Please note that the Whole Grains Council lists this as a dessert recipe. If you make and serve this in your child care, it should be treated as an EXTRA food and not claimed on CACFP.

Care to join us?
If you do and wish to send in comments about your experience making and serving it in your child care, your submissions should be emailed on or before Friday, April 15th. Send to jgiles@wisconsinearlychildhood.org. Use Wee Chefs and the name of your child care home in the subject line of your email.

We LOVE photos! If you include a photo of your small friends cooking and it is selected for possible inclusion in the newsletter, a required Waiver will be emailed to you for each child’s parent to sign and return in advance of publication. 
Eat a Rainbow!
This resource from Common Threads illustrates the important nutrients we get when eating a variety of brightly colored fruits and vegetables:
When to Request an Adjustment to Your Claim
Review your claim summary for every claim. If you believe you weren’t paid correctly and require an adjustment, fill out the adjustment form.

The completed form, plus all required documentation, is due in the Food Program office by the 15th of the month in which you received the reimbursement in question. Requests are reviewed and processed on the 15th of every month.

  • Adjustments cannot be made on late claims.
  • Adjustments cannot be made for provider errors, such as late, missing, or incorrect paperwork.
  • Adjustments can be made for WECA Food Program processing errors.
Keep Your Food Program Records
Be sure to retain your food program records as required by federal regulations. Your records must be kept at your child care site for the current month, plus the previous 12 months. Records for the three years prior to that can be stored onsite or offsite.
  • Records can be stored electronically or on paper.
  • Whatever way you store them, all records must be available for review by representatives of the United States Department of Agriculture(USDA), WI DPI, or by the WECA Food Program at any time during your regular child care hours.
  • Reminder: Best business practices advise that you back up your food program records periodically.
Why Direct Deposit?
There are many reasons to switch to direct deposit. According to Forbes Advisor:
 
  • Direct deposit is more convenient: No more trips to your financial institution!
  • Direct deposit is faster! Paper checks take longer to arrive and longer to clear.
  • Direct deposit is more economical:
  • Reduces paper use, paper waste and paper storage
  • Less costly for the payer than printing and distributing paper checks
  • Direct deposit is more secure:
  • Paper checks can be stolen. Stopping payment can be costly and difficult.
  • Paper checks can be cashed by someone else.
  • Paper checks can be lost. The payer may charge a fee to reissue the check.
 
The “Social Security Administration boasts that not a single payment via direct deposit has been lost since 1976, when beneficiaries were first offered the option to receive direct deposit.” (https://www.forbes.com/advisor/banking/your-complete-guide-to-direct-deposit/)
WowButter Update
A prior issue of Provider Connection included information about WOWBUTTER, a peanut-free and tree nut-free spread. Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction has not determined whether this product can credit as a vegetable. Until further notice, please credit a 1.12 ounce serving as 1 serving of meat/meat alternate. DO NOT CREDIT AS A VEGETABLE.
Annual Income Guidelines for Free or Reduced-
Price Lunch Program
The income guidelines, updated annually, are effective July 1, 2021, through June 30, 2022, and apply to student eligibility for free and reduced‑price school meals offered through the National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs, and milk offered through the Special Milk Program. For the 2021-22 school year, USDA has provided regulatory waivers, allowing for all students to eat free meals through the National School Lunch Seamless Summer Option without student eligibility determination. For more information, visit:
Wisconsin WIC Program Information and Income
Eligibility Guidelines
Current WIC information is available here.
Trying to Stretch Your Food Dollars?
Extra Steps Required for Paper Claimers
Milk: Part of a Healthy Eating Pattern
Learn why milk is important for development and what kinds of milk you can serve in the CACFP with this educational PDF from the National CACFP Sponsors Association:
Questions about Feeding with Breastmilk?
Feeding Infants in the Child and Adult care Food Program (USDA, 2019) gives the following guidance:
  • Thaw breastmilk in the refrigerator overnight, under running water or in a container of warm water. Only thaw the amount of breastmilk needed for one feeding to reduce waste.
  • Do not thaw breastmilk at room temperature, by mixing with warm breastmilk, placing in boiling water, or heating in a microwave. Breastmilk may become very hot when heated in a microwave, which could burn the baby. In addition, heating can destroy some of the important nutrients in breastmilk.
Have more questions? Consult your own copy of Feeding Infants in the Child and Adult Care Food Program. It’s a wealth of information, and it’s as near as your own food program binder!
Is Your Email Correct?
This year, we will continue to send you more communications via e-mail. For example, how to get your annual WECA earnings, tier renewal letter, etc. It’s the easiest way for us to communicate with all of you at the same time. Don’t miss out on anything important!
  • Make sure we have your correct email address
  • Make sure these emails are not going into your junk folder
  • Do not unsubscribe from our e-mail communications
Homemade Combination Foods
Whenever you serve one of your own recipes that combines two or more foods, be sure to enter each component on your menus. We don’t know your recipes! Be sure the appropriate serving size (by age) for each component is being served to each child.
What Are Commercial Combination Foods?
Commercial combination foods are commercially prepared foods that combine two or more menu components (meat and grain, for example) into one item. A few commonly served items are pizza, processed meatballs, and breaded meat/poultry products such as corn dogs, fish sticks, and chicken nuggets. 

Commercial combination foods are only creditable when the actual content is known and documented by the product’s manufacturer. If you serve any commercial combination food, you must keep one of these on file:
  • Its Child Nutrition (CN) label, which you see above, OR
  • Its product information statement, which you may request from the manufacturer.

The CN label shows the item’s contribution to the USDA meal pattern requirements. Read labels carefully: Some products might meet only one requirement. A CN label does not indicate that a product is healthy. Commercial combination foods are often high in sodium, fat, and calories and can be expensive.

When your area coordinator observes, in person, or during a video call, commercial combination foods being served, she may verify that adequate portions were served, using your required documentation. Your Area Coordinator must view this documentation when these foods are indicated on a provider’s menus. Otherwise, she must deduct that meal service per USDA regulation.
How to Add a Child Electronically in CACFP.Net
Procedure to add a child:
  • Log into CACFP.Net and click on My CACFP info, Children.
  • On the left, you will see the list of your current children.
  • To begin the enrollment process, click on the box “Add a child” located below your list of current children.
  • On the right side, enter the correct child information for that child.
  • Enter the parent information; you MUST enter the Parent's email address.
  • At the bottom of the page, click “Send this electronic form to parent” for review and signature. You will see a message stating, “Email has been sent to the parent.”
  • The parent will receive an email from System Administrator, which will contain a Pin# for them.
  • The parent will click on the link in the email and enter their Pin. They will receive a message stating the form will be sent to them shortly.
  • The parent will then receive an email from LFWorkflow@wisconsinearlychildhood.org to finish enrolling their child and submit the form.
  • Once the parent has successfully submitted the Child Enrollment Form you will receive an email from LFWorkflow@wisconsinearlychildhood.org with a copy of the signed form. You may print the form and save it in your binder or store it electronically. Either way, you must have access to each child enrollment form for any visit from WECA or DPI.

Please contact your Area Coordinator with any questions.

Be sure to retain your food program records as required by federal regulations. Your records must be kept at your child care site for the current month, plus the previous 12 months. Records for the three years prior to that can be stored onsite or offsite.
  • Records can be stored electronically or on paper.
  • Whatever way you store them, all records must be available for review by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), WI DPI, or by the WECA Food Program at any time during your regular child care hours.
  • Reminder: Best business practices advise that you back up your food program records periodically.

Enrolling an infant into the Food Program will trigger an automatic electronic Parent Provider Formula Agreement. Less paper, less postage!
 
BE SURE the child id number that is assigned by CACFP.Net is the number you use on any other documents pertaining to that child.

  • Numbers that do not match will result in loss of reimbursement for that child.
  • Numbers that do not match are considered provider errors.
  • Provider error is not adjustable.
Need to Update a Parent Provider Formula Agreement?
Does your child care parent want to change something on the PFA? Here’s the process for you two to follow:
  1. Provider prints off the copy of the Child Enrollment Form with attached PFA for that child. 
  2. The parent makes written changes on the form with the new information. The parent signs the form and marks his/her initials beside each change and also marks the date the changes are being made.
  3. Provider emails a copy of the updated form to Margaret Mundt at mmundt@wisconsinearlychildhood.org.
  4. Margaret Mundt updates the PFA information for that child in the Food Program database.
  5. The provider keeps a copy of the revised information (electronically or on paper) with her Food Program information.
Thinking About School?
If you’re thinking about school – for you! – think about T.E.A.C.H. “The T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood® Wisconsin program recently reached a significant milestone . . . award[ing] a scholarship to our 10,000th recipient. Balancing the demands of school, work, family and personal lives is not an easy task, and the successes of T.E.A.C.H. recipients should be celebrated,” said Mary Erickson Gerbig, Director of the T.E.A.C.H. Wisconsin program.
The Provider Connection is published by the WECA Food Program Claims Director: Pam Polenz
Provider Connection Editor: Julie Giles Questions: Call 608-240-9880 or visit our website.
This institution is an equal opportunity provider
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