Child and Adult Care Centers, Emergency Shelters, Head Starts, and At-Risk sponsors who wish to participate in the CACFP in Arizona must complete a series of trainings and submit applications to ADE for assessment of the organization's financial viability, administrative capability, and accountability for Federal funds.
The steps below detail the application process for CACFP in Arizona.
| 2026 Memorandums | ||||
| SP # | CACFP # | SFSP # | HNS # | Memo Title |
| SP 01-2026 | Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act of 2025 – Implementation Requ | |||
The following are program forms and resources for operators of the Child and Adult Care Food Program.
The Child and Adult Care Food Program, CACFP, is a United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) meal reimbursement program helping Family Day Care Homes (FDCHs) provide well-balanced, healthy, and nutritious meals and snacks to children in private home settings. CACFP’s role is critical in creating more affordable options for low-income Arizona families.
The Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) is a federally funded meal program through the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) that provides reimbursements for nutritious meals and snacks served to eligible children enrolled for care at participating centers.
A variety of public or private nonprofit child care centers and Head Start programs, which are licensed or approved to provide day care services, participate in CACFP. For-profit centers that serve lower-income children may also be eligible to participate.
State agencies and child nutrition sponsoring agencies shall comply with the requirements of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and the Age Discrimination Act of 1975.
Per 7 CFR 210.18(m)(1), the USDA requires State agencies to post a summary of the most recent administrative review (AR) results for each School Food Authority (SFA) on the State agency's website. The AR summaries for the current three-year cycle are posted below.
The National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and School Breakfast Program (SBP) are federally assisted meal programs through the United States Department of Agriculture, operating in public and private nonprofit schools and residential childcare institutions. It provides nutritionally balanced, low-cost, or free breakfasts and lunches to children each school day. The USDA Foods Program supports domestic nutrition programs and American agricultural producers through purchases of 100% American-grown and -produced foods for use by schools and institutions participating in the federal programs.
