On September 20, 2023, USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service published a revised policy memo on Feeding Infants and Meal pattern Requirements in the CACFP that replaces a 2018 memo and covers the following topics:
- Offering infant meals,
- Parent or guardian provided breastmilk or formula,
- Solid foods (complementary foods), and
- Compliance.
The memo also contains some helpful Questions & Answers. You can read our summary of these updates below.
OFFEERING INFANT MEALS
USDA Memo CACFP 11-2023
Notes about My Food Program
Enrolled infants must be offered meals if a child care facility is participating in the CACFP. An enrolled infant means enrolled for care, not specifically for the CACFP.
Parents are allowed to decline CACFP participation. If that is the case, mark the child as Non-CACFP.
Infants should be fed on-demand and can be fed outside of established mealtime periods.
Checking the box to designate a roster as an Infant Roster removes the point-of-service meal count requirements.
Child care facilities need to offer at least one iron-fortified infant formula that is not on the FDA Exempt Infant Formula List.
Sponsors can designate the infant formula offered in Site Details
Infants with special dietary needs may require an infant formula that is on the FDA Exempt Infant Formula list based on a statement signed by a recognized medical authority.
My Food Program can track Special Diet Statements. In addition, all infant formulas that are on the FDA Exempt Infant Formula list say, “for infants with special dietary needs” in the name of the food item.
PARENT OR GUARDIAN PROVIDED BREASTMILK OR FORMULA
USDA Memo CACFP 11-2023
Notes about My Food Program
When a parent or guardian declines the facility-provided formula and supplies breastmilk or infant formula, all other required meal components must be provided by the facility.
My Food Program can automatically check that the facility is providing at least one component. If not, the meals will be disallowed with reason “Parent/Guardian Supplying More than One Component for an Infant”
Expressed breastmilk can be stored in the refrigerator for up to four days from the date the breastmilk was expressed (the previous recommendation was three days).
N/A
Previously frozen breastmilk that is thawed and stored in the refrigerator should be used within 24 hours and never refrozen
N/A
When preparing powdered infant formula, use safe water and follow the label directions precisely
N/A
Use prepared infant formula within 2 hours of preparation. If it is not fed within 2 hours, it may be refrigerated and used within 24 hours.
N/A
SOLID FOODS (COMPLEMENTARY FOODS)
USDA Memo CACFP 11-2023
Notes about My Food Program
Solid foods must be served to infants around 6 months as it is developmentally appropriate. Once an infant is developmentally ready for solids, they must be offered.
Users can designate the dates that an infant is developmentally ready for solid foods on their participant page.
Fruit and vegetable juices are not reimbursable for infantsFruit and vegetable juices are not reimbursable for infants.
No fruit or vegetable juices are available to be added to infant menus in My Food Program.
Bread/bread-like items are ONLY part of the infant meal pattern at snack.
Only the infant snack menus have the option to add a grain in My Food Program.
Yogurt offered to infants must meet the sugar limit; whole eggs (both white and yolk) are creditable as a meat alternate in the CACFP.
All yogurt food items have the reminder of the sugar limit of 23 grams or fewer per 6 ounces in the food item description.
Infant foods containing DHA are creditable in the CACFP.
N/A
COMPLIANCE
USDA Memo CACFP 11-2023
Notes about My Food Program
Federal regulations require that facilities maintain menus but the specific form of acceptable recordkeeping is up to the State agency.
My Food Program has both three methods for tracking infant menus along with the option to ignore missing infant menus if you are maintaining infant menu paperwork elsewhere.
The memo then has 15 additional pages of Questions & Answers!
The most common questions that the My Food Program support team gets about infants are:
Because that meal pattern requirements are different for infants and children.
Because grains are only part of the infant meal pattern at snack.
Center or providers are required to offer solid foods to infants who are developmentally ready.
Because those foods are not creditable in the infant meal pattern.
We strongly encourage you to read the memo and contact your state agency with any questions.
My Food Program is the most customizable CACFP software. You can “make it yours!” for your infant recordkeeping with:
- custom dates for infant developmental readiness,
- tracking the infant formula offered by a provider or center,
- three ways to record infant menus (or turn off the requirement for infant menus all together!)
- track infant meal notifications
- turn on or off the automatic error checks for missing infant meal notifications, and
- automatic compliance checks to ensure that the provider or center is not supplying more than one component for an infant.
Ready to get started?