Food Program Anniversaries in July

10 years:  Dawn Babington, Ruby Davis, Angelica Gonzalez Pancheco, and Marilee Ehani  

15 years: Rebecca Quintanilla  

25 Years: Jackie Westlund

We applaud your commitment to serving nutritious meals and snacks to the children in your care!  

Welcome to Our New Providers!

Tennille, Savannah, and Devonya in Milwaukee 

Deb in Wausau 

We welcome you and applaud this mark of professionalism!  

WECA Support for Child Care Businesses, Educators 

It’s a challenging – and uncertain – time for early care and education in Wisconsin with the Child Care Counts Program ending on June 30 and final payments being sent July 11. At this time, the state budget process continues, and we are still waiting for the Legislature’s Joint Committee on Finance to take action on the Department of Children and Families budget. 

With this in mind, the need for support in the early childhood field is greater than ever. WECA is here to help you in any way we can – through business coaching , compensation support, mental health and wellness resources, professional development opportunities, and higher education scholarships.  

If you need a listening ear or advice as you move forward, reach out to your coach, counselor, specialist, or area coordinator. They’ll be happy to help or point you in the right direction. And, if you know someone who could benefit from getting connected with WECA for the first time, tell them to give us a call at 800-783-9322. Our WECA Hub Navigator will answer the phone, listen to their needs, and connect them to the person or resources they’re looking for.   



As the legislative process and advocacy efforts continue, stay connected so you get timely updates: follow WECA and Raising Wisconsin on social media for action alerts and keep an eye on your inbox! We’re committed to sharing opportunities for action, policy positions, ECE research updates, and more. We’re dedicated to supporting you now and over the long term. 

Components and Crediting 

Ask the Food Program

Question:

Some of the choices I was frequently offering in the Bread category have gone away! Why? 

Answer:

Thank you for that question!  



The Food Program recently updated the drop-down list that appears to providers when populating a food in the Bread category in Regular menus. This was done in response to DPI’s recommendation and to simplify selecting foods in this category and documenting those that are whole grain-rich.  

If you select bread from the revised list in the drop-down menu, and the bread you served at that meal or snack was, for example, 100% whole wheat, click the whole grain box as imaged here:

The completed, saved regular Breakfast menu would appear like this: 

NOTE: Clicking the whole grain box alerts the Food Program that a whole grain-rich source was served at that meal or snack.  

CACFP guidelines require that providers serve at least one whole grain-rich source daily. Failure to do so may result in deductions to your claim for that day, times the number of days each month that you claim that you did not fulfill that requirement. This can be a costly error for providers. 

Recipes to Try! 

Try these summery, little or no cooking recipes from MyPlate! 

• Broiled Tomatoes and Cheese 
• Tuna Apple Salad Sandwich 

Prohibition on the Use of Chicken and Seafood from China 

The Food Program received information that the, “2025 Appropriations Act extends the 2024 provision that Program funds may not be used to procure raw or processed poultry or seafood products from the People’s Republic of China” through Sept. 30, 2025.  

CACFP Meal Patterns and Portion Sizes  

Need a refresher about the CACFP required portion sizes for children and infants? Check out these resources.

• https://dpi.wi.gov/sites/default/files/imce/community-nutrition/pdf/cacfp_child_meal_pattern.pdf
• https://dpi.wi.gov/sites/default/files/imce/community-nutrition/pdf/cacfp_infant_meal_pattern.pdf

Serving Milk in the CACFP 

The USDA fluid milk requirements are developed to ensure that children receive the nutrients they need to grow and develop. Remember: 2% milk is NOT reimbursable. 

What to Know: Feeding the Formula-Fed Baby on CACFP 

Are you wondering how to communicate with parents of infants in your care about formula feeding in CACFP? Follow this link for helpful information. 

The link to the full resource, Feeding Infants in the Child and Adult Care Food Program is here.

NOTE: This resource is currently under revision. 

Monitoring and Oversight

Tiering Expired on June 30, 2025 

Every income eligibility determination expired on June 30, 2025. 

Important reminders about tier applications: 

• Remember that the deadline for a July 1 effective date is always July 31. 
• USDA does not allow adjustments for late or missing paperwork/documentation. 
• It is your responsibility to submit all required forms and documentation by the deadline. 



Tier information and applications will be sent to your email address on file on July 1, 2025.  

NEW: September-May Reporting School-Aged Child in Care During School Hours 

When you claim meals or snacks for school-aged children that are customarily served during their school hours, such as A.M. Snack or Lunch, you must let the Food Program know why they are in child care. Copy and paste the URL into your browser and log into CACFP.Net. 

In CACFP.Net go to Site Changes, and select School Age Requests: 

Select the date, the name of the child from those enrolled in care, and click the meals and snacks. Add a statement about why the child is in care, such as “No school,” as shown below. Be sure to save your changes. 

This information will be sent electronically to the Food Program. 



Without this information on file, meals and snacks served to school-aged children during school hours from August through June may not be allowed. 

Wisconsin WIC Program: Information and Income Eligibility Guidelines 

Look here for the updated WIC income guidelines. 

USDA CACFP Reimbursement Rates for Family Day Care Homes 

Current Tier 1 and Tier 2 reimbursement rates per meal or snack can be found in this listing. 

Note that the rate the Food Program sponsorships receive by claim is also listed. Your claim, no matter how many – or how few! - meals or snacks you claim is how the WECA Food Program is paid. 

• You depend on your Food Program reimbursement, AND 
• The Food Program depends on your claim! 

This institution is an equal opportunity provider.

The Provider Connection is published by the WECA Food Program.

Any Questions: Call 608-240-9880 or visit our website.

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