New Mailing Address (7/22/11)

 

Our mailing address is now: Better Child Care, PO Box 99, Jacksonville, IL  62651

 

           Water Availability in the CACFP – (7/22/11)

 

The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010, Public Law 111-296, establishes a requirement to make potable water available to children in the CACFP. 

 

Family day care homes participating on the CACFP are required to make drinking water available to children, as nutritionally appropriate.  Throughout the day, including at meal times, water should be made available to children to drink upon their request, but does not have to be available for children to self-serve.  While drinking water must be made available to children during meal times, it is not part of the reimbursable meal and may not be served in lieu of fluid milk.

 

The 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans do not establish a daily minimum intake for water consumption, but do recommend that water be consumer daily.  However, caregivers should not serve young children too much water before and during meal times; excess water may lead to meal displacement, reducing the amount of food and milk consumed by the children.  States and sponsors should encourage facilities to serve water with snacks when no other beverage is being served, and in lieu of other high calorie, sweetened beverages (juice drinks, soda, sports drinks, etc.) that are served outside of meal times. 

 

Water can be made available to children in a variety of ways, which include but are not limited to having cups available next to the kitchen sink faucet, having water pitchers and cups set out, or simply providing water to a child when it is requested.

 

Circumstances may arise in which safe water is not readily available in a day care, (such as during a water restriction after a flood, a boil order, etc.).  In these instances, purchasing bottled drinking water for children would be appropriate. 

 

This provision is effective immediately.  However, to provide adequate time for training and technical assistance, full compliance should occur no later than October 1, 2011.  Source:  Adapted from USDA Memo Code CACFP 20-2011.

 

 

         Fat-Free and Low-Fat Milk Requirement—(7/22/11)

 

Fluid milk served in the CACFP must now be consistent with the most recent version of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans.  The Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend that persons over 2 years of age consume fat-free (skim) or low-fat (1%) fluid milk.  Therefore, fluid milk served to children two years of age and older must be:  fat-free or low-fat milk (1%), fat-free or low-fat (1%) lactose reduced milk, fat-free or low-fat (1%) lactose free milk, fat-free or low-fat (1%) buttermilk, or fat-free or low-fat (1%) acidified milk.  Milk must be pasteurized fluid milk that meets State and local standards, and may be flavored or unflavored.  Effective no later than October 1,2011, whole milk and reduced-fat (2%) milk may not be served to children over two years of age. 

Better Child Care, Inc.

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Postage for Mailing Meal Forms (7/22/11)