Child and Adult Care Food Program
The Complete Guide to CACFP: State Agencies, Meal Patterns, and Sponsor Requirements
The Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) is a federal nutrition program that reimburses participating child care centers, family day care homes, Head Start programs, afterschool programs, emergency shelters, and adult day care centers for nutritious meals and snacks. CACFP is administered nationally by USDA Food and Nutrition Service and operated state by state through a designated state administering agency.
What CACFP covers
CACFP is authorized under 7 CFR 226 and administered through sponsoring organizations and independent centers. Eligible sites claim reimbursement for meals that meet the federal CACFP meal pattern for their participants' ages.
- Licensed child care centers and family day care homes
- Head Start and Early Head Start programs
- Outside-school-hours care and at-risk afterschool programs
- Emergency shelters serving children and youth
- Non-residential adult day care centers
CACFP meal patterns by age group
CACFP uses seven different meal pattern age groups. Pick your participants' age to see the required components, minimum serving sizes, and crediting rules.
CACFP state agencies
Each state and DC has a designated agency that administers CACFP locally — approving sponsors, conducting reviews, and processing reimbursement claims. Find your state below.
California CACFP
California Department of Social Services
Florida CACFP
Florida Department of Health
Georgia CACFP
Bright from the Start: Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning
Illinois CACFP
Illinois State Board of Education
Michigan CACFP
Michigan Department of Education
New York CACFP
New York State Department of Health
North Carolina CACFP
North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services
Ohio CACFP
Ohio Department of Education and Workforce
Pennsylvania CACFP
Pennsylvania Department of Education
Texas CACFP
Texas Department of Agriculture
Prepare CACFP menu and production-record drafts
CrEATe is a free CACFP planning workspace for sponsors, Head Start programs, centers, and family day care homes. Compare entered menu data with configured meal-pattern fields, reference 2,200+ USDA Food Buying Guide yield rows in a separate planning flow, search Product Records across available FDC, CNDB, and PFS sources, and export record drafts for sponsor or state review.