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The Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP), a federal nutrition education and meal reimbursement program, feeds children annually, including young kids in a variety of early care and education settings. As families and early childhood educators face mounting pressures from the in the history of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and , this federal nutrition program has become more critical than ever 鈥� not just for feeding children, but for supporting their capacity to learn and grow.

The connection between nutrition and learning is undeniable, particularly in the earliest years, when children’s . Research has proven that hunger and food insecurity . There鈥檚 evidence that in the first 1,000 days of a child鈥檚 life can affect various elements of development and even change the structure of their brain. And researchers have suggested between household food insecurity in early childhood and kindergarten readiness. 

It鈥檚 difficult for a child who arrives at their school or child care program hungry to engage fully with educational activities, build relationships and develop the self-regulation skills essential for later academic success. CACFP addresses this fundamental barrier to learning by ensuring that children in child care programs and schools receive nutritious meals and snacks throughout the day, but the program is underused and unevenly accessed due to barriers including a lack of awareness among providers and administrative overload for participants.

indicates that among children from low-income families, CACFP participation can increase consumption of healthier foods. 鈥淚f you compare centers that do participate in CACFP and those that don’t, the ones that are doing CACFP are oftentimes serving healthier meals because they have to have fruits, vegetables, whole grains [and foods with] reduced sugar and low sodium,” said Clarissa Hayes, deputy director of Child Nutrition Programs at the (FRAC). These requirements align with federal dietary guidelines and are regularly updated to reflect the latest nutritional science, she noted.

This nutritional quality has made CACFP “an indicator of quality when it comes to child care settings,” Hayes explained, because it demonstrates that programs are committed to supporting children’s overall well-being and development. 

The program helps kids 鈥渄evelop those healthy habits really early on,鈥� said Alexia Thex, vice president of the , a national organization that supports the CACFP community. If children don鈥檛 build those habits when they鈥檙e very young, it鈥檚 extremely difficult to make changes through elementary, middle and high school.

CACFP operates through a reimbursement system in which eligible providers working in child care centers and family child care settings receive federal funding for serving meals that meet strict nutritional guidelines. Typically, providers use their own money to buy approved foods, which they prepare themselves, and then apply for reimbursement, but sometimes a program facilitates a contract for ordering and delivering prepared meals. Reimbursement levels are decided using a tiered system that was introduced in 1997. Providers serving children from low-income families receive higher reimbursements than those with children from more affluent families. 

Implementation varies from state to state. According to Thex, the reimbursement process is managed by various nonprofit in each state that are responsible for 鈥渕aintaining program integrity while still getting tons of people fed and in all kinds of different areas.鈥� These organizations also organize scheduled and surprise inspections to check in on how providers are using the funding. 

For many early learning programs, CACFP provides crucial financial support. Alethea Etinoff, who runs POC Learning Academy in Washington, D.C., has participated since 2013 and sees the program as beneficial on multiple levels. She uses the funding to cover the groceries needed to prepare healthy foods for the children in her program. “CACFP allows you to serve nutritious meals. I think it’s kind of fun because you get to introduce the kids to food that they may not get at home.” While her brussels sprouts received mixed reviews, she said the kids and families enjoy the exposure to a variety of options.

Early educators who participate with the program also gain valuable nutrition insights. “You don’t really think about how much sugar is in yogurt,” noted Etinoff. 

Despite its benefits, CACFP participation has declined significantly since 1997, primarily due to its administrative burden. The tiered system designed to direct resources to those most in need has created substantial paperwork requirements that many small providers find overwhelming. Consequently, 39% of eligible child care centers and 33% of eligible family child care homes do not participate, the National CACFP Association . 

In 2023, The association called for . 鈥淭he paperwork has gotten a little bit crazy,鈥� Thex contends. 

Rachel Bymun, who operates Luv Muffins Preschool and Child Care in Bay Point, California, described the daily reality: “The hardest part is having to track all the meals and having to plug that in every day for each one of the meals. And they’ve made the system so that if you don’t do it that day, you don’t get reimbursed for it.” Furthermore, she said, surprise CACFP inspections create an atmosphere of distrust. 

The process isn鈥檛 easy for providers. 鈥淚f kids are in households that get SNAP, they鈥檙e automatically eligible for school meals,鈥� Hayes explained. But that鈥檚 not the way it works with CACFP. The burden of eligibility falls on the provider, not the family 鈥� and many providers, who are already juggling multiple responsibilities may opt out due to time constraints and the complexity of the paperwork, which could jeopardize an important pathway to nutrition programs for families. 

The financial challenges are equally daunting. Many providers, particularly those in family child care settings, cannot access bulk purchasing discounts and must shop at local retailers. Meanwhile, reimbursement rates, while adjusted annually for inflation, do not justify increased administrative demands.

Janna Rodriguez, who runs Innovative Daycare Corp in Freeport, New York, said the reimbursements can feel paltry. “I’m spending $2,500 to $3,000 on food monthly on 16 children who are here from 7:30 in the morning till 5:25 in the afternoon, and they’re receiving breakfast, morning snack, lunch and dinner. They only reimburse me for two meals and a snack.” 

鈥淎s a child care owner, I appreciate the reimbursements,鈥� said Rodriguez. 鈥淏ut the bureaucratic part is causing some of us to wonder if it鈥檚 really worth it.鈥�

Despite its challenges, CACFP does offset food costs for many providers and demonstrates remarkable adaptability in serving diverse communities. Thex noted that programs can be culturally responsive and customize their menus, for example, serving halal foods for Muslim families, accommodating plant-forward preferences and even sourcing organic ingredients when possible.

Similarly, the program supports children with special dietary needs. Bymun started her child care program because her daughter had severe food allergies. She regularly adapts meals for children with various allergies and dietary restrictions, though this flexibility comes at a significant additional cost.

CACFP helps, but the program only works if it鈥檚 accessible for the providers, Bymun noted. 

As the cuts take effect and families lose access to SNAP benefits, Etinoff anticipates that “CACFP is going to be a lifeline for the parents.”

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