Nutrition and meal planning requirements for licensed childcare

Last updated 2026-07-09

What nutrition rules apply to licensed childcare programs?

Two overlapping frameworks govern what you feed children in licensed care. The first is federal: the USDA's Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP), which sets meal pattern requirements for age-appropriate food components and portion sizes. The second is your state licensing agency, which writes its own rules about meal frequency, food temperatures, food storage, documentation, and sometimes specific food restrictions.

If you receive CACFP reimbursement, federal meal patterns are binding on you no matter what your state says. If you don't participate in CACFP, your state licensing rules are still binding, and many of them mirror the CACFP standards anyway. So most licensed programs end up following CACFP meal patterns whether or not they're officially enrolled.

The USDA updated its CACFP meal pattern requirements in 2017, and those are the current standards. The headline changes from the old rules: juice stopped counting as a creditable fruit at breakfast, at least one serving of whole grains daily became mandatory, and limits tightened on added sugars and saturated fat in flavored milks and yogurt ^[1].

State rules vary a lot in specificity. California has detailed Title 22 regulations covering refrigerator temperatures, labeling of children's food containers, and written menus posted in advance. A smaller state may simply require that meals "meet USDA nutritional guidelines" without spelling out how. Read your state's childcare licensing handbook directly. No summary of state rules will be current enough to rely on for a compliance inspection.

What does the CACFP meal pattern actually require?

CACFP splits children into three age groups for meal planning: infants (birth through 11 months), toddlers (1-2 years), and children (3-5 years, with a separate column for 6-12 years in school-age programs). Each meal type (breakfast, lunch/supper, snack) has required food components and minimum portion sizes per child. Serve all required components or the meal isn't creditable.

Here is a simplified version of the lunch/supper requirements for center-based care, which is the most detailed meal ^[1]:

Age group	Meat/meat alternate	Grains	Vegetable	Fruit	Milk
1-2 years	1 oz	1/2 oz eq	1/8 cup	1/8 cup	1/2 cup
3-5 years	1.5 oz	1/2 oz eq	1/4 cup	1/4 cup	3/4 cup
6-12 years	2 oz	1 oz eq	1/2 cup	1/4 cup	1 cup

Breakfast requires milk, grains, and either a fruit or vegetable. At least one grain per day across all meals must be whole grain-rich, meaning whole grain is the first ingredient ^[1].

Snacks require two of the five components: milk, meat/meat alternate, grains, fruit, or vegetable. You can serve up to two snacks per day per child if they're in care long enough.

Infants are handled entirely differently. CACFP splits the infant year into two periods: birth through 5 months (breastmilk or iron-fortified formula only) and 6 through 11 months (breastmilk or formula plus infant cereal, pureed fruits, vegetables, and eventually pureed meats). You cannot serve cow's milk to infants under 12 months under CACFP rules ^[1].

For infant daycare specifically, keeping iron-fortified formula and age-appropriate first foods on hand while tracking which parents supply breastmilk adds real logistical complexity to your meal records. Build a paper system for this before your first licensing visit.

How many meals and snacks does a daycare have to serve per day?

Most state licensing rules set a minimum based on hours in care, not a flat daily number. A common standard: a meal (breakfast, lunch, or dinner) for every four to five hours the child is present, plus a snack for care periods that cross a typical eating gap without a meal.

CACFP reimbursement rules are more specific. Centers can claim reimbursement for up to two meals and one snack per child per day, or one meal and two snacks. Family daycare homes can claim the same combination, though the reimbursement rates differ between tiers ^[2]. You cannot claim three meals and two snacks for the same child in the same day under CACFP.

For a full-day program running 7 a.m. to 6 p.m., the practical result is usually breakfast (if the child arrives before 8 or 9), lunch, and one afternoon snack. Some programs also serve an early dinner for children who stay past 4 or 5 p.m. If you're a home-based program open those same hours, the math is identical, but you may be operating as a CACFP Tier I or Tier II provider, which affects your reimbursement rate, not what you must serve ^[2].

For a broader look at how home-based programs work, see our guide to daycare operations and licensing basics.

What is CACFP and do you have to join it?

CACFP is a USDA program that reimburses licensed childcare providers for the cost of nutritious meals and snacks served to eligible children. It runs at the state level through sponsoring organizations or state agencies. USDA sets the reimbursement rates annually and adjusts them for inflation. For program year 2024, the lunch reimbursement rate ran as high as $3.27 per meal for free-eligible children at centers, down to $0.28 for paid meals, with state-specific adjustments possible ^[2].

Joining CACFP is not federally required for licensing. But many states either require it as a condition of licensure (less common) or require that you meet CACFP meal patterns even if you don't enroll (more common). Some state subsidy contracts also require CACFP participation as a quality condition.

Purely on the money, not joining CACFP when you qualify is leaving cash on the table. A home daycare serving 6 children three meals and a snack, five days a week, can realistically receive $3,000 to $6,000 per year in CACFP reimbursements depending on tier status and the income eligibility of enrolled children. Nobody has a perfectly clean national aggregate for a per-provider figure, but USDA's program data shows CACFP served about 4.3 million children on an average day, with total meal reimbursements above $4.2 billion annually ^[2].

To enroll, contact your state's CACFP administering agency or find a sponsoring organization through USDA's Food and Nutrition Service. Family daycare homes almost always enroll through a sponsor rather than directly.

How do meal patterns differ for infants versus toddlers and preschoolers?

Infants take the most careful handling because what you can and cannot serve changes month to month. USDA's CACFP Infant Meal Pattern, updated in 2017, sets specific age-differentiated rules ^[1]:

Birth through 5 months: breastmilk or iron-fortified formula at every meal occasion, nothing else.

6 through 11 months: breastmilk or iron-fortified formula continues, and you can start adding iron-fortified infant cereal, pureed or mashed vegetables, fruits, and eventually meat or meat alternates. Juice is never creditable during infancy under current CACFP rules.

One thing that trips up new providers: if a parent provides breastmilk, you must label and store it separately from formula, keep it refrigerated, and in most states document that it was the parent's own breastmilk. If breastmilk runs out mid-day and you substitute formula, write down the substitution and ideally get the parent's written authorization ahead of time.

For toddlers (1-2 years), the shift is to whole cow's milk (not reduced-fat, per CACFP rules for this age group) along with solid foods. For children 2 and older, CACFP requires low-fat (1%) or fat-free milk. This is a common compliance error: serving whole milk to 2-year-olds when the rule calls for low-fat ^[1].

For preschoolers (3-5), portion sizes step up, whole grain requirements stay, and you have full flexibility within the component framework. This age group is the easiest to menu plan for because they can eat almost any adult food in appropriate portions.

What are the food safety and storage requirements in licensed childcare?

Food safety rules in childcare come from two sources: your state licensing regulations and the FDA Food Code (or your state's adopted version of it). Most states require childcare programs to follow at least the same food temperature and storage standards that apply to food service establishments.

The key temperatures: hot foods held at 135°F or above, cold foods held at 41°F or below, and the danger zone (41°F to 135°F) where bacterial growth speeds up. Cooked food left in the danger zone for more than four hours gets discarded, not refrigerated and re-served ^[3].

Refrigerators in licensed programs should be monitored with a thermometer and kept at or below 40°F. Freezers hold at 0°F or below. Many states require a posted temperature log, and inspectors will check it.

A few specific rules that catch providers off guard:

Home-prepared foods brought by parents (birthday treats, party food) are restricted or banned outright in many states because they can't be verified as prepared in a licensed kitchen. Check your state's rule before you accept anything.

Leftover food from a served meal generally can't go back into the serving container or get served again. Once it's been set out in front of children, it's typically discarded.

For programs serving more than a certain number of children (thresholds vary by state, often 13 or more), some states require a food manager with a certified food protection manager credential on site or available.

Cross-contamination prevention, handwashing before and after food handling, and separate cutting boards for meat and produce are standard practice and get observed during inspections. If your state uses a licensed environmental health inspector in addition to a childcare licensing inspector, food safety may get checked twice.

How do you handle food allergies and special dietary needs?

Food allergies in childcare are both a safety issue and a potential discrimination issue under the Americans with Disabilities Act. A severe food allergy that substantially limits a major life activity qualifies as a disability under the ADA, which means you may have to reasonably accommodate the child ^[4].

For CACFP purposes, USDA allows substitutions for children with disabilities (including severe food allergies) when a licensed physician documents the need. The physician must name the food to avoid and an appropriate substitute. Without that medical statement, CACFP doesn't require you to substitute, though state licensing rules and ADA obligations may still apply ^[1].

In practice, most programs handle food allergies through a written allergy action plan or medical action plan, signed by the child's physician and the parent. That document should spell out:

• What the child cannot eat and common hidden sources
• Symptoms of a reaction and their severity
• Emergency medications (epinephrine auto-injector if prescribed) and who is trained to use them
• When to call 911

Epinephrine auto-injectors (EpiPens) require separate staff training. Many states now have laws permitting or requiring that trained childcare staff can administer epinephrine even without a nurse on site. Check your state's rule, because this varies significantly.

For religious or cultural dietary restrictions (halal, kosher, vegetarian), CACFP does not require substitutions, but many providers accommodate them voluntarily. Worth thinking about if you serve specific communities. For context on culturally specific program needs, see how Somali daycare Minnesota programs approach dietary accommodation within licensing requirements.

Document everything in writing. An allergy accommodation that isn't written down didn't happen as far as a licensing inspector or a jury is concerned.

What records and menus does a licensed daycare have to keep?

Nutrition recordkeeping falls into two buckets: what your state licensing agency requires, and what CACFP requires if you participate.

For state licensing, most agencies require:

• Written menus posted at least one week in advance (sometimes two weeks)
• Documentation of any menu substitutions made on the day of service
• Records of meals served, kept for a minimum period (commonly one to three years)
• Food temperature logs if you're cooking on site

For CACFP, the requirements run deeper. You complete daily meal count records showing how many meals you served at each meal type, separated by age group. Family daycare home providers generally use a simpler form than centers. These records must be kept for at least three years after the close of the fiscal year they cover, per USDA regulations ^[2].

CACFP also runs monitoring visits. State agencies typically review centers at least once per year. Sponsors review family daycare homes, often three times in the first year and at least annually after that. During a review, the monitor checks your meal count records, observes a meal service if possible, reviews menus for creditable components, and confirms that your recipes or food packages support the portions you're claiming.

One practical tip: keep your menus, your meal count records, and your receipts (proving you bought what you served) together in the same binder organized by month. Monitors appreciate it, and it makes your own life easier when they show up unannounced.

If you're building out your full compliance documentation system, ChildCareComp's compliance toolkit includes templates for meal count forms, menu planning, and allergy action plans sized for both home and center programs.

How do state licensing meal requirements differ from federal CACFP rules?

Short answer: state rules are a floor, and CACFP rules sit higher in some ways. States can be more restrictive than CACFP, but they can't authorize practices that break federal CACFP rules for enrolled programs.

Some concrete examples of where states diverge:

California requires a written meal plan that parents can ask to see and that stays on file. California also limits juice to 4 to 6 oz per day for toddlers, matching current AAP guidance ^[5]. Some states still allow juice at breakfast as a creditable fruit substitute for non-CACFP programs, even though CACFP dropped that option in 2017.

Texas licensing rules require infants be fed on demand, not on a schedule, which can clash with a center's preference for scheduled feeding times. CACFP says nothing about feeding schedules for infants; Texas does ^[6].

New York requires childcare programs to have a written nutrition policy and to train staff on it. That's separate from CACFP training requirements.

A useful general resource: Child Care Aware of America publishes state-by-state childcare policy data that includes nutrition-related requirements, though it isn't always updated in real time ^[7]. For the authoritative version, read your state's actual childcare licensing regulations.

The table below shows how a few selected states compare on key meal requirements. These are general illustrations. Verify current rules with your state agency.

State	Follows CACFP meal patterns?	Juice restricted?	Menu posting required?	Allergy plan required in writing?
California	Yes (required for CACFP; mirrored for non-CACFP)	Yes, 4 oz limit	Yes, posted in advance	Yes
Texas	Yes for CACFP; own standards otherwise	Consistent with CACFP	Yes	Yes
Florida	Yes for CACFP; own standards otherwise	Not specified in licensing rules	Yes	Yes
New York	Yes	Consistent with CACFP	Yes, plus nutrition policy	Yes

For a deeper look at what a licensed daycare center must comply with beyond nutrition, including ratios and physical environment rules, see our center licensing guide.

What are the CACFP reimbursement rates and how do you qualify?

CACFP reimbursement rates are set annually by USDA, tied to the Consumer Price Index, and published in the Federal Register each July for the upcoming program year. Rates differ by meal type (breakfast, lunch/supper, snack), by setting (center vs. family daycare home), and by the child's eligibility status (free, reduced-price, or paid) ^[2].

Family daycare homes also have two tiers. Tier I homes are those in low-income areas or run by a provider whose household income qualifies. Tier II homes are everyone else. Tier I rates are meaningfully higher, which is why income documentation matters at enrollment.

For program year 2024 (October 2023 through September 2024), approximate reimbursement rates for centers were:

• Breakfast: $0.43 (paid), $0.97 (reduced), $1.66 (free)
• Lunch/Supper: $0.28 (paid), $1.68 (reduced), $3.27 (free)
• Snack: $0.10 (paid), $0.50 (reduced), $1.01 (free)

Family daycare home rates work off the tiered structure rather than the free/reduced/paid split used for centers ^[2]. These are federal base rates. Some states add supplemental funds.

To qualify, your program must be licensed (or license-exempt where permitted), enrolled with your state CACFP agency or a sponsoring organization, and serving meals that meet the CACFP meal patterns. Children must be enrolled and their income eligibility status documented. You serve the meal, record it, and submit your claim monthly.

CACFP reimbursements are not taxable income for nonprofit providers and are treated as a reimbursement (not revenue) for many tax purposes, though home daycare operators should confirm treatment with a tax professional since IRS rules here can be nuanced.

What should your weekly menu plan actually look like?

A compliant weekly menu plan for a licensed program serving ages 1 to 5 looks something like this:

Breakfast each day needs milk, a grain, and a fruit or vegetable. Monday breakfast might be 1% milk, whole wheat toast (whole grain credit), and banana slices. Tuesday: 1% milk, oatmeal made with whole oats, and diced strawberries. You're rotating grains and rotating fruits, hitting your whole grain requirement daily.

Lunch needs all five components: milk, meat or meat alternate, grain, vegetable, and fruit. An example: 1% milk, ground turkey taco meat on a whole wheat tortilla, shredded romaine, and diced mango. That's all five. The vegetable and fruit portions for 3-5 year olds are each 1/4 cup at minimum.

Snack needs any two of the five components. Try whole grain crackers and low-sugar yogurt (check that added sugar is 23 grams or less per 6 oz, per CACFP's yogurt standard). Or apple slices with cheese.

A few planning principles that hold up in practice:

Batch-plan your whole grains. Whole wheat bread, brown rice, whole grain pasta, and oats are easy to source and cover most of your grain component days without hunting for specialty items.

Rotate proteins over the week to hold down sodium and processed meat. One or two days of beans or lentils as the meat alternate saves money and often goes over better with toddlers than you'd expect.

Post your menu somewhere parents can see it, even if your state doesn't technically require it. It builds trust and cuts down the calls asking what their kid ate.

When you substitute a menu item because something didn't arrive or a child is sick and group sizes changed, write it down with the reason. That substitution note is what protects you in a CACFP review.

For programs just getting operations structured, reviewing how a daycare center sets up its full daily schedule alongside meal service helps with time-blocking. Nutrition planning works best when it's built into your schedule, not bolted on.

Are there nutrition requirements specific to home-based daycares?

Yes, though they're mostly the same meal pattern requirements applied at a smaller scale. The meaningful differences for home-based programs:

CACFP tier status matters more. Because your reimbursement rate is partly set by the income demographics of your neighborhood and your own household income, getting your tier classification right from the start affects how much money you receive. Many home providers don't realize they qualify for Tier I rates until they apply ^[2].

Meals you serve to your own children are not reimbursable by CACFP. If you have children of your own in your home daycare, you still feed them, obviously, but you don't count them in your CACFP meal claims. This is a common compliance error that shows up in CACFP audits.

Kitchen inspections are often part of a home daycare license visit in a way they're not for centers (which have a separate commercial kitchen). The licensing inspector may look at your refrigerator, your food storage areas, and whether you have adequate handwashing facilities near the food prep area.

Meals in home settings are typically family-style, meaning you put food on the table and children serve themselves or you serve them directly. CACFP allows family-style service, but you must document that the minimum portions were available, even if a child chose not to eat them.

The documentation burden is lighter for family daycare homes than centers. Home providers usually use a simpler daily record form and submit monthly to their sponsor rather than running a full institutional recordkeeping system. Still, the consequences of sloppy records are the same: disallowed claims, repayment demands, and in serious cases, de-enrollment from CACFP.

What happens if you fail a nutrition compliance inspection?

Nutrition-related deficiencies during a licensing inspection can range from a minor corrective action to something that affects your license status, depending on the severity and your history. Common findings:

Expired food items in the refrigerator or pantry. Fix: immediate removal, documentation that it won't happen again.

Menus not posted or not meeting component requirements. Fix: revise menus, post them, and show the inspector you understand the requirements.

Food temperatures out of range. Fix: adjust the refrigerator, log temperatures going forward, possibly discard the food in question.

For CACFP specifically, a serious finding (claiming meals that weren't served, claiming improper portion sizes, failure to document) can trigger overpayment findings and demands for repayment. USDA's Food and Nutrition Service Instruction 796-4 lays out the corrective action and disqualification procedures for CACFP participants ^[8]. Serious or repeated violations can result in permanent disqualification from the program.

If you get a corrective action notice from a licensing inspector, respond in writing within the required timeframe (usually 10 to 30 days depending on state), document what you fixed, and keep a copy of your response. Inspectors generally want you in compliance, not penalized. The system assumes good-faith errors happen. What it doesn't tolerate is ignoring the notice.

For the full picture of what a compliance inspection covers beyond nutrition, the ChildCareComp compliance toolkit covers inspection prep from food safety through staff ratios.

For more context on what licensing compliance looks like across program types, see our overview of daycares and licensing basics.

Frequently asked questions

Does my daycare have to participate in CACFP?

Federal law doesn't require CACFP participation as a condition of childcare licensure. But many states require you to meet CACFP meal patterns whether or not you're enrolled, and some subsidy contracts require it. Because CACFP also pays you reimbursements for meals you're already serving, there's rarely a good reason to stay out if you qualify. Contact your state CACFP administering agency to check eligibility.

Can parents send food from home instead of the daycare providing meals?

Some states allow parent-provided meals; others restrict or prohibit them. If you accept parent-provided food, CACFP will not reimburse those meals since the program requires you to serve and claim meals yourself. States that allow parent-provided food often require the daycare to supplement any nutritionally deficient items. Check your state licensing regulations for the specific rule. Either way, document your policy in writing.

What milk should I serve to different ages in daycare?

CACFP requires whole cow's milk for children ages 1 to 2, and low-fat (1%) or fat-free (skim) milk for children 2 and older. Non-dairy alternatives (soy, oat, almond) aren't automatically creditable; only unflavored, unsweetened fortified soy milk is creditable as a CACFP milk substitute without a medical statement. Flavored milk is allowed only if it has no more than 22 grams of total sugars per 8-oz serving.

Are juice and flavored drinks allowed in licensed childcare?

Under current CACFP rules, 100% fruit juice no longer counts as the fruit component at any meal or snack, so it doesn't help you meet your required fruit component for reimbursement. Many states add their own juice limits, often capping total juice at 4 to 6 oz per day for toddlers and preschoolers, consistent with American Academy of Pediatrics guidance. Sugary drinks, flavored punches, and sports drinks are not creditable under CACFP at all.

How far in advance do menus have to be planned and posted?

Most state licensing regulations require menus to be written and posted one to two weeks in advance, though this varies by state. CACFP doesn't specify a federal advance posting requirement, but your state CACFP agency or sponsor may. The practical reason for advance posting: it lets parents of children with allergies flag problems before the food is in front of their child, and it gives you time to source ingredients.

What counts as a meat alternate for CACFP meal patterns?

CACFP-creditable meat alternates include cooked dry beans or peas, cheese, eggs, yogurt, peanut butter, soy nut butter, and tofu. Yogurt has a sugar limit: no more than 23 grams of total sugars per 6 oz (the cap from the 2017 rule update). Nuts and seeds alone are creditable only as a snack component, not as the full meat alternate at a meal. Nut butters require serving alongside another creditable item for a full meal.

How do I handle a child in my daycare who has a severe food allergy?

Get a written allergy action plan from the child's physician before the first day. The plan should name the allergen, describe reaction symptoms and severity, specify emergency medications (including whether an epinephrine auto-injector is prescribed and who is trained to use it), and give emergency contact instructions. Train all staff who interact with that child. Post the plan in the kitchen and the child's primary room. For CACFP substitutions, you need a physician's medical statement naming the substitute food.

What records does a home daycare have to keep for CACFP?

Family daycare home CACFP participants must keep daily meal count records showing meals served by meal type, enrollment records, income eligibility forms for enrolled children, and menus documenting what was actually served. All records must be kept for at least three years after the close of the fiscal year. Your CACFP sponsor tells you what form to use and how to submit monthly claims, and reviews your records during monitoring visits.

Can a licensed home daycare serve food it cooked itself, or does it need a licensed kitchen?

Home daycares typically prepare food in their own home kitchens, which most state licensing agencies inspect as part of licensure. You don't need a separately licensed commercial kitchen in most states for family daycare home operations. The inspector looks for adequate refrigeration, handwashing access, safe food storage, and basic food safety practices. Some states add requirements if you serve more than a certain number of children.

What are the whole grain requirements in CACFP?

CACFP requires at least one serving of grains per day be whole grain-rich. A product is whole grain-rich if whole grain is listed as the first ingredient on the label, or if it meets the FDA's whole grain definition. Whole wheat bread, oatmeal, brown rice, whole grain pasta, and whole grain tortillas typically qualify. When in doubt, read the ingredient list: the first ingredient tells you what the product is mostly made of.

How often does a daycare get inspected for nutrition compliance?

CACFP-enrolled centers are typically reviewed by their state agency at least once per year. Family daycare homes enrolled through a sponsor are reviewed by the sponsor at least annually, and usually three times during the first year of participation. State licensing inspections (separate from CACFP monitoring) also cover nutrition and food safety, and frequency varies by state, typically annually or on complaint. Unannounced visits are standard for both.

Does CACFP cover snacks for school-age children in after-school programs?

Yes. CACFP has an At-Risk Afterschool Meals component that covers snacks (and in some areas, meals) for school-age children in afterschool programs serving low-income areas. The program is open to licensed childcare centers and certain nonprofit organizations. Reimbursement is available for one snack per child per day. Income eligibility documentation requirements differ from standard center-based CACFP, so check with your state agency.

What happens if I claim a CACFP meal that wasn't actually served?

Claiming meals not served is fraud and carries serious consequences. USDA's Food and Nutrition Service can require repayment of the full amount of disallowed claims, assess interest and penalties, and permanently disqualify the provider and its principals from CACFP participation. Criminal prosecution is possible for intentional fraud. Accidental errors (a transposed number, a miscounted tally) are handled through corrective action and repayment; deliberate false claims are a federal matter.

Sources

1. USDA Food and Nutrition Service, CACFP Meal Patterns: CACFP meal pattern requirements by age group for food components, portion sizes, whole grain requirements, and juice elimination at breakfast, updated 2017
2. USDA Food and Nutrition Service, CACFP Reimbursement Rates: CACFP reimbursement rate structure by meal type, setting, and child eligibility tier; annual program participation data including approximately 4.3 million children served daily and over $4.2 billion in annual reimbursements
3. FDA, Food Code (most recent edition adopted by states): Safe food holding temperatures: hot foods at 135°F or above, cold foods at 41°F or below; four-hour discard rule in the temperature danger zone
4. U.S. Department of Justice, ADA Requirements for Child Care Centers: Severe food allergies that substantially limit a major life activity may constitute a disability under the ADA, requiring reasonable accommodation in childcare settings
5. American Academy of Pediatrics, Fruit Juice in Infants, Children, and Adolescents (Policy Statement): AAP recommends no fruit juice for children under 1 year; 4 oz per day limit for toddlers ages 1-3; 4-6 oz per day for children ages 4-6
6. Texas Health and Human Services, Child Care Licensing Minimum Standards: Texas childcare licensing minimum standards require infants be fed on demand rather than on a fixed schedule
7. Child Care Aware of America, State Fact Sheets and Policy Data: State-by-state childcare policy data including nutrition-related licensing requirements
8. USDA Food and Nutrition Service, FNS Instruction 796-4, Disqualification of CACFP Participants: USDA FNS Instruction 796-4 outlines corrective action procedures, overpayment recovery, and permanent disqualification procedures for CACFP compliance violations
9. California Department of Social Services, Community Care Licensing Division, Title 22 Regulations: California Title 22 requires written meal plans available to parents on request, specific beverage restrictions, and food labeling in childcare settings
10. USDA Food and Nutrition Service, Crediting Foods in CACFP: CACFP yogurt sugar limit of no more than 23 grams of total sugars per 6 oz; only unflavored fortified soy milk creditable as non-dairy milk substitute without medical statement; whole grain-rich definition requires whole grain as first ingredient