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May 2023 | View as Webpage

Your Monthly News & Updates

Stay connected: Check out our current staff directory here.

Food Program Staff Directory

National Days in May

May 4: National Orange Juice Day


Read Each Orange Had 8 Slices (Giganti, 1992)


Have a tasting party and serve a variety of oranges to your child care kiddos! Try Navel Oranges, Mandarin Oranges, Clementines, Tangerines, Tangelos, Blood Oranges…to name a few!

Special Shout Outs

Jennifer in Milwaukee

Leanna in Marshfield

Judith in Madison

Sara in La Crosse

15 years: Lea Johnson

20 years: Mamie Washington and

Marlene Tiesling

25 years: Karen Houle

30 years: Tonya Dupuis and Georgianna Dehart



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

2023 Annual Provider Training – Due May 31!

The required annual provider training must be completed by May 31, 2023.


Read the training, complete the test, and then scan the completed test to your Area Coordinator today!


NOTE: Failure to complete the annual training can result in a Serious Deficiency.

Find A Copy Here

Expiring JUNE 30, 2023: Keep Kids Fed Act of 2022

Please be prepared for potential changes in your Food Program reimbursement:


  • The Keep Kids Fed Act (KKFA) allowed for a “temporary additional reimbursement for the 2022-2023 school year…in the amount of 10 cents” for each meal and snack served in CACFP. This is due to expire on June 30, 2023. A bill to extend the additional 10 cent reimbursement was introduced in early March by Representatives Abigail Spanberger and Brian Fitzpatrick, who cosponsored the Helping Schools Feed Kids Act of 2023. (https://www.cacfp.org/2023/03/27/helping-schools-feed-kids-act-of-2023/)
  • The KKFA allowed all family child care homes to be reimbursed for meals and snacks at the Tier 1 rate. After June 30, payment will revert to a two-tiered reimbursement rate.


Tiering information will be available July 1, 2023.

Updated USDA Nondiscrimination Statement

Whenever providers refer to USDA/CACFP/Food Program participation, requirements and/or the meal patterns (such as in their parent handbook, website, newsletter or advertisements,) they are required to include the current nondiscrimination statement. 


Find the current Nondiscrimination Statement with Complaint Filing Procedure here under GM H: Civil Rights

GM: Civil Rights


In accordance with federal civil rights law and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) civil rights regulations and policies, this institution is prohibited from discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex (including gender identity and sexual orientation), disability, age, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity.


Program information may be made available in languages other than English. Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication to obtain program information (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign Language), should contact the responsible state or local agency that administers the program or USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TTY) or contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339.


To file a program discrimination complaint, a Complainant should complete a Form AD-3027, USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form which can be obtained online at: https://www.usda.gov/sites/default/files/documents/ad-3027.pdf, from any USDA office, by calling (866) 632-9992, or by writing a letter addressed to USDA. The letter must contain the complainant’s name, address, telephone number, and a written description of the alleged discriminatory action in sufficient detail to inform the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights (ASCR) about the nature and date of an alleged civil rights violation. The completed AD-3027 form or letter must be submitted to USDA by:


mail:

U.S. Department of Agriculture

Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights

1400 Independence Avenue, SW

Washington, D.C. 20250-9410


fax:

(833) 256-1665 or (202) 690-7442


email:

[email protected]

Ask the Food Program


Question: I am tired of serving the same snacks. Do you have any new snack ideas?



Answer: Thank Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction for this list of 51 healthy snacks! (This resource is available in English.)

Healthy Snack Ideas

Tofu Taco Recipe


Interested in incorporating more creditable, meatless meals into your repertoire? Try this recipe offered by the National CACFP Sponsor’s Association!

Try This Recipe

“Commercially prepared tofu is creditable: A 2.2 oz (1/4 c) serving of commercially prepared tofu, containing at least 5 g of protein, provides 1 oz eq of meat/meat alternate.” (FNS: Crediting Handbook for the Child and Adult Care Food Program, 2020)

Looking for a quick, zesty side dish for this meatless entrée? Try Avocado and Corn Salsa from My Plate.

Avocado and Corn Salsa Recipe

Try This Recipe

Go! Slow …Whoa!


National CACFP offers this poster

showing “anytime” foods, like fresh, frozen, or canned fruits and veggies; “slow” foods, like fruits canned in light syrup or veggies with added fat or sauces that can be eaten sometimes; and “Whoa!” foods – such as pre-fried foods like fish sticks or processed meats like hot dogs that should only be eaten once in a while.


For more information, please contact your Area Coordinator.

Read Here

Infants on CACFP: Things You Should Know


All providers caring for infants must offer to supply:


1) At least one creditable iron-fortified infant formula (IFIF).


2) Creditable, developmentally appropriate infant foods.

  • Providers must offer to supply infant formula and foods even when they choose to not claim infant meals for CACFP reimbursement.
  • Providers cannot avoid this requirement by stating infants are not “enrolled” in the CACFP, or by citing administrative or cost barriers to offering infant meals.
  • Families may choose whether they would like their infant to receive the provider-supplied formula and foods, or if they would like to supply breast milk, a different formula, and/or foods.
  • Families cannot be required to supply formula or foods.


This information is captured on the Parent/Provider Formula Agreement, which is triggered when a provider enrolls a new child with a date of birth younger than 1 year of age.


3) The provider must always have enough IFIF and foods on-hand to serve meals according to each infant’s developmental readiness and feeding schedule, regardless of whether the family or provider supplies the infant’s IFIF, breast milk, and/or foods. If families choose to supply breast milk, IFIF, and/or foods for their infant while in care, the provider and families must agree to a contingency plan that will be followed when the infant’s IFIF, breast milk, and/or food supply runs out. The contingency plan must ensure that the infant’s feeding schedule is not interrupted while the infant is in care.


4) The provider must supply all components or all but one component: The CACFP allows families to provide only one component for a meal or snack that is claimed. If families provide more than one component, the meal cannot be claimed.


When an infant is fed foods provided by the parent, the provider must complete and submit Infant foods Provided by Parent: https://wisconsinearlychildhood.org/programs/food-program/one-infant-meal-component-provided-by-parent/


5) The provider should work with the infant’s parent(s) to decide when the child is developmentally ready to be introduced to solid foods. Consult this helpful resource from DPI for more information:

https://dpi.wi.gov/sites/default/files/imce/community-nutrition/pdf/infant_development_readiness_handout.pdf


For more information, please contact your Area Coordinator.

State Attendance Records Do Not Substitute for Daily Meal Counts!


Your menus and meal counts (including each child’s name or ID number) must be recorded online by the end of each business day. Paper templates are to be used for emergencies only.


State attendance records will not be accepted by your Area Coordinator as a substitute for your daily meal counts. State attendance records will be used ONLY to compare with your Food Program records. 

(Source: WI FDCH Guidance Memorandum L, 2/2022)

Is Your Contact Information Correct?


To keep you informed, the Food Program needs your correct contact information.


Changed your email?

Notify us here: Change in Email Address


Has your name, address or phone number changed?

Notify us here: Change in Provider Information


If your name or address changed, you MUST submit a copy of your new cert

or license: Email it to [email protected] or

fax it to 866-222-9520.

The Provider Connection is published by the WECA Food Program.

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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