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Monthly Newsletter for Child Nutrition Administrators
"Driving around, living the dream
I'm cruising the town, digging the scene
I'm not gonna stress, not gonna worry
Doing my best, no need to hurry
Looking ahead, with anticipation
Making each day a new celebration
Seems like it could go on forever
Long as we can all stick together
We used to get around, get up and hit up
All the hot spots in town"
Spring Vacation
— The Beach Boys
LISTEN TO THE LATEST NEWS
Final Rule Released for School Meals
USDA released the final and improved nutrition standards for the National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program. This rule gradually phases in added sugars limits and includes a single sodium reduction. Schools are not required to make any changes to their menus until school year 2025-2026.
Key updates to the nutrition standards include:
Added Sugars
- For the first time, added sugars will be limited in school meals nationwide, with small changes happening by Fall 2025 and full implementation by Fall 2027.
Milk
- Schools can continue to offer flavored and unflavored milk, which provide essential nutrients that children need, such as calcium, vitamin D, and potassium. There will be a new limit on added sugars in flavored milk served at breakfast and lunch by Fall 2025.
Sodium
- Schools will need to slightly reduce the sodium content in their meals by Fall 2027. In response to public comments, USDA is only requiring one sodium reduction and not the three incremental reductions that were proposed last year.
Whole Grains
- Current nutrition standards for whole grains will not change. Schools will continue to offer students a variety of nutrient-rich whole grains and have the option to offer some enriched grains to meet students’ cultural and taste preferences.
Supporting Other Food Preferences
- While not a new requirement, starting in Fall 2024, it will be easier for schools to serve protein-rich breakfast foods such as yogurt, tofu, eggs, nuts, and seeds, which can help reduce sugary food options while also supporting vegetarian diets and other food preferences.
Supporting Local Food Purchases
- Also, starting in Fall 2024, schools have the option to require unprocessed agricultural products to be locally grown, raised, or caught when making purchases for school meal programs, making it easier for schools to buy local foods.
Buy American
- Additionally, starting in Fall 2025, schools will have limits on the percentage of non-domestic grown and produced foods they can purchase.
TDA is working to review the rule in-depth and determine the best path of implementation. TDA will communicate updates to guidance in newsletters, monthly school calls, and on the SquareMeals.org Policy page.
USDA Resources:
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USDA Foods
Food Inventory Management
Per current federal and state guidelines, inventory levels may not exceed a 6 Months-On-Hand level. Once the requested inventory is allocated to the account, be sure to utilize it by placing delivery orders. Ordering inventory reduces the overall inventory and keeps CEs compliant with federal and state guidelines. In the event that inventory is unable to be utilized, find another school within the region that can use that inventory. Please use the H4529 - Authorization to Transfer USDA Foods to complete the transfer. The goal is to reduce inventories being stored at the state-contracted warehouses and get school districts to take possession of the USDA Foods that were requested.
How to view the inventory?
Monitor inventory levels via the Weekly Commodity Bulletin in TX-UNPS until June 30, 2024. Pay close attention to the Summary of Commodities in the Warehouse section, which provides detailed inventory information under Free Storage, Short-Term Storage, and Long-Term Storage. TDA encourages minimal to zero inventory in short- and long-term storage.
Storage Reminders:
- Free Storage: The state-contracted warehouse provides CEs with free storage for 45 days after the date of allocation, as indicated in TX-UNPS.
- Short-Term Storage: begins with the 46th day of storage from the date of allocation as indicated in TX-UNPS.
- Long-Term Storage: begins at six months (or 181 days) from the date of allocation as indicated in TX-UNPS. For products in long-term storage, the state-contracted warehouse may charge double the short-term storage rate.
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WBSCM Next Steps
TDA has made some updates to the USDA Foods Ordering page as the transition from TX-UNPS to WBSCM continues. (Hint: Click on the boxes for more information.)
On April 29, 2024, TDA hosted a webinar describing the next steps related to WBSCM. Here are some key takeaways:
- Round 2 will open May 1-24 for direct delivery only. This round is limited and will not contain any seasonal items from Round 1. This may be the last round to use entitlement dollars. Run an Entitlement/Bonus Summary Report to determine any remaining amount to spend.
- The DoD Fresh Program balance will be loaded into FFAVORS in June 2024.
- Cancelled orders could have been a result of the following situations:
- Incorrect material or ship-to assignment
- Part of the targeted usage analysis - did not utilize entitlement or provide TDA with a plan to use entitlement before a specific date
- Truckload quantity not met
- TDA plans to reallocate state quantities to fill orders.
You will not receive items marked canceled.
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Rural Summer Non-Congregate Resources and Form
TDA recently released the Summer Non-Congregate Request Form, Non-Congregate Eligibility Map, and FAQs for eligible SFSP and SSO operators who want to serve non-congregate summer meals in rural areas this summer. You can find all of these resources on the Summer Non-Congregate Feeding Program page.
The Need to Know...
Summer operators interested in providing non-congregate service should do the following:
- Using the site mapper, validate that the intended site is rural and is more than two miles away from the next nearest site.
- If the site is rural and in good standing, ensure that a site application has been submitted in TX-UNPS prior to submitting the Non-Congregate Request Form. Sites must be approved or conditionally approved within TX-UNPS prior to being approved for non-congregate service.
- Read the FAQs very carefully. Requirements for non-congregate feeding have changed since non-congregate feeding was allowable statewide during the pandemic. Operators should know what is expected of a successful non-congregate site and evaluate its operations to determine if the site can be in compliance. Note that these FAQs will serve as the official "handbook" for Summer Non-Congregate service until updates to the official program handbooks can be made.
The Resources...
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And Justice for All Poster
USDA has confirmed that there is no release date scheduled for the new "And Justice for All" (AFJA) Civil Rights posters. All operators should use the current 2019 version. The 2019 version can be printed from SquareMeals or the slightly updated version from the USDA Food and Nutrition Service. Operators should print the poster in color and the intended 11x14 size.
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"Turnip the Beet" 2023 Award Winners!!!!
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) announced the winners of the Turnip the Beet award for summer 2023. This award recognizes sponsors within the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) and the National School Lunch Program Seamless Summer Option (SSO) that go above and beyond program requirements to serve high-quality meals to children during the summer months. This year, 140 sponsors qualified for either a gold, silver, or bronze Turnip the Beet award. The full list of awardees can be found here.
Region 11 Awardees:
Birdville ISD
Eagle Mountain-Saginaw ISD
Grapevine-Colleyville ISD
Lewisville ISD
Northwest ISD
Additionally, FNS is announcing a new Turnip the Beet awards process for summer 2024. All Summer Meal Programs sponsors in good standing, including SFSP sponsors and National School Lunch Program SSO sponsors, may be eligible for a Turnip the Beet Award. Sponsors may self-nominate or be nominated by another party. Each State agency determines their own deadline for nominations. The nomination must include a completed Nomination Form and a detailed one-month menu. FNS evaluates and scores the nominations and notifies the winners in writing. For more information, please refer to the links below.
More information:
Input Needed on ESC Region 11 Training
Are you the perfect fit?
We're looking for an NSLP Specialist to join our awesome team. You can see the job description and apply here. Questions? Contact Jocelyn Karbo at 817-740-3678 | jkarbo@esc11.net.
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Dear Rosie,
I need more information on WBSCM, USDA Foods, and other school-related operations. Will MEGACON happen this year? Where can I find more information about MEGACON?
Thanks,
Eager to Learn
Dear Eager to Learn,
MEGACON is one event where professionals working within federal food nutrition programs can come together to learn, collaborate, and inspire. At MEGACON, you will see educational, networking, and policy sessions that pertain to the following federal nutrition programs:
- National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and School Breakfast Program (SBP)
- USDA Foods – Includes the Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) and the Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP)
- Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP)
- Summer Food Service Program (SFSP)
All courses this year are created by and led by staff from TDA's Food & Nutrition Division unless noted on the MEGACON agenda.
MEGACON starts with the Welcome Session on Tuesday, May 14, and will conclude on Thursday, May 16, with the Outstanding Achievements in Food & Nutrition closing session.
Hope to see you there,
Rosie
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TURN UP THE VOLUME: DEADLINES APPROACHING
MAY 31
SSO Application Packet Due in TX-UNPS
JUNE 30
SNP Application Packet Due in TX-UNPS
Be sure to complete the following sections:
- Health Inspections
- Contact Person of the attestation
- Site applications
JULY 1
CACFP Renewal Application Packet opens in TX-UNPS
Attachment B opens in TX-UNPS
FSMC New Contracts and Renewals must be signed, executed, and submitted to TDA
AUGUST 12
Farm Fresh Challenge Opens
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RESOURCES AND LINKS
- Administrative Review Resources on our website
- SNA 2023-24 Promotional Calendar
- 2023-24 Breakfast and Lunch Meal Pattern Chart
- The ICN On-Demand Training
- SNA Recipe Library
- A Yummy Curriculum
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REQUEST TIME: REGISTER FOR A CLASS
MAY 23
Press Play
JUNE 4-6
ESC Region 11 Summer Conference (Registration closed on April 30)
- June 4: Frontline Staff
- June 5-6: Administrative and Management Staff
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ESC REGION 11 CHILD NUTRITION
Email: padams@esc11.net
Website: https://www.esc11.net/childnutrition
Location: 1451 South Cherry Lane, White Settlement, TX, USA
Phone: 817-740-7545
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ESC11ChildNutrition
EB 4.30.24, PA 5.1.24, JK 5.1.24, BM 5.1.24