UPDATES

NEWSLETTERS

*Please note that the link to the ‘Letter to Households – No Charge 25-26’ is not active in the published newsletter. You can view it here: CACFP Letter to Households - No Charge 25-26

January 2025

WEBINARS

*If you are watching any KCC recording that mentions a Codeword,

the Codeword is no longer active.

Please be sure to log your activity in your professional development log!

March 2026- Fueling Success Through Nutrition Policy & Celebration

February 2026- Community Outreach: Using Social Media to Your Advantage

January 2026- Menu Planning and Procurement - A Recipe for Success

December 2025- Mastering the USDA Food Buying Guide’s Tools

November 2025 - Food Buying Guide & Recipe Analysis Workbook

October 2025- Meal Patterns - Cross the 'T's' & Dot the 'I's'

September 2025- Meal Pattern Modernization: Added Sugar Intensive & Culinary Training

August 2025- Annual Cashier & Civil Rights Training

May 2025- Common Administrative Review Findings

April 2025- Boost Your Kitchen's Potential: Efficiency & Menu Strategies

March 2025- Win at Breakfast

February 2025- Added Sugar Product Limits

January 2025- The Global Kitchen

December 2024- ND Educators Service Cooperative Co-op Purchasing & Buy American

November 2024 - Equipment Ideas and Grant Opportunities

October 2024- October Hot Topics

September 2024- Annual Cashier & Civil Rights Training

May 2024- Breakfast Program Expansion

April 2024- All About Soy

Guest Speaker - Linda Funk - Soyfoods Connection & North Dakota Soybean Council

Application for funds to serve a soy food on their menu

March 2024- Beans, Beans the Challenging Subgroup

Guest Speaker - Julie Garden-Robinson of NDSU Extension

Webinar Survey – If you watch this webinar, please take the survey, to assist NDSU Extension. Thank you! https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/JULIEGR
Resources from NDSU Extension: Beans, Lentils, Chickpeas | NDSU Agriculture
To find out more information about the Healthy Meal Incentive Recognition Awards: https://healthymealsincentives.org/recognition-awards/
Quantity recipes, including Legumes

February 2024- Records Retention

Please have your Production Record Book and Administrative Records Book readily available, as we will reference these during the webinar. If you need any of the resources discussed, please contact our office at dpicnfd@nd.gov.

January 2024- Menu Writing with USDA Foods

Website to find USDA Foods information and processed food product sheets (CN Labels/Product Formulation Statements)

December 2023- Identifying the Nutrition Facts Label

Using the Nutrition Facts Label in the CACFP | Food and Nutrition Service (usda.gov)

November 2023- Smart Snacks in Schools & Additional Food Sales

Smart Snack Calculator: Smart Snacks Product Calculator (healthiergeneration.org)

October 2023- Sub-grant opportunities available through the Child Nutrition and Food Distribution Office.

September 2023- Farm-to-School Updates and Pre-K Meal Pattern Requirements

August 2023- Annual Cashiers Training

Emily Karel, North Dakota’s Team Nutrition Grant coordinator

Assist cashiers in understanding a reimbursable meal under the National School Lunch Program and National School Breakfast Program.
Skill-building activities for meal monitors to recognize reimbursable meals.

May 2023: Wrap up to revisit what still needs doing and what is to come in SY24.

Paid Lunch Equity (PLE), Adult meal pricing, Ala Carte pricing & the Nonprogram Food Revenue Tool
HB1494: “Lunch Shaming” Bill – more guidance to come
HB1491/SB2294: Free Lunch for Working Poor Bill – Communicate with your point of sale company or build the new eligibility class into your Excel spreadsheets
Free/Reduced meal application has been reformatted to accommodate new eligibility class/Income Guidelines contain another table of numbers
End of the Year reminders: SNP renewal; Summer P-EBT; Triennial assessment of the Local Wellness Policy; Professional development hours
- For the following resources please email dpicnfd@nd.gov
  - Documents included in the resource packet
  - Free / Reduced-Price meal applications, household letters, and notification letter templates can be found under the SNP/Free-Reduced Information tab.
  - USDA Paid Lunch Equity tool – SY23-24 to help set student lunch pricing
  - NDDPI Adult Meal price spreadsheet to set adult meal prices within requirements
  - USDA Nonprogram Food Revenue tool – required to be completed each year if the school is selling more than just second milk and adult meals
  - USDA Sample Detailed NP tracking tool
  - NDDPI quick 5-day calculator
  - Triennial assessment
  - Professional Development log

April 2023: “The Power of Power Lunch”

with Lenora Stevenson, Student Information Specialist with Edu-Tech. Power Lunch is a module of the state student information software Power School. Lenora walks through the reports available in Power Lunch and how to download the meal data to work with it in an Excel spreadsheet.

For more information about the module, contact Edu-Tech at https://www.edutech.nd.gov/ Use the “Support” drop-down menu to file a ‘Help ticket.’
The Institute of Child Nutrition has an interactive spreadsheet called “Key Performance Indicators for School Nutrition Success” to use the data that is gained from Power Lunch. Search for this spreadsheet on www.theicn.org.

March 2023: Summer Food Service Program Updates

February 2023: USDA Proposed Rule & Submitting a Public Comment

Assistant Director Lynelle Johnson covered most of the proposed revisions to child nutrition programs during the first 19 minutes of the webinar. At minute 19:20, Amy Nelson, Child Nutrition Specialist encourages you to make comments on the proposed changes. She shows you where to find the comment submission form and adds helpful hints on how to comment. The Question and Answer session was not recorded.

Resources for this session are:

Links to resources mentioned during the presentation:

Link to submit a Public Comment:

Federal Register:: Child Nutrition Programs: Revisions to Meal Patterns Consistent With the 2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans
- - Look for Section 16, if you would like the “sparknote” version of the updates, or check out the Attachment of the ‘Highlights’

January 2023: Procuring School Food & Supplies for SY 24

This presentation goes through the basic types of procurement for your school food service. We also talk with Lisa Truax on the ND Coop’s Direct to Manufacturer food bid, timeline, and what is next for schools who have opted into this procurement type. For those who have not opted into the ND school food coop, we have templates for you to start your procurement plan with. Remember all schools must have a procurement policy and code of conduct written for their staff – samples are provided.

December 2022– USDA Foods

November 2022 – 7 CFR 210.8(a)(1): On-site Review.

An annual review of the lunch and breakfast programs must be completed each year by February 1 at districts that have more than one school site. USDA strongly encourages all schools to review the checklist for “program accountability and integrity.”

Site Monitoring Worksheet

September 2022 - Annual Cashier Training - Please See SEPTEMBER 2024 for the most current training

August 2022– Back in the Saddle Again with Free/Reduced Meal Applications

The federal school meal programs are returning to income eligibilities and meal pricing structures this year, so we want to remind you how families should fill the applications out and then how a school district will process them.

Instructions on How to Apply for Free and Reduced Price School Meals

June 2022 – Hot Topics, Cool Ideas, and Nice pics from our Recap of NDSNA 2022.

Customer service was a key focus of this year’s state School Nutrition Association conference. Find copies of all the resources from the convention at www.northdakotasna.com/conference We also review the foodshow fare – new products for next year’s menus and new ways to prepare old favorites. Enjoy!

May 2022– Top Ways to Prepare for Next Year

April 2022– Meal Pricing - Student, Adult, and A la Carte with Tips and Tricks for keeping production costs inline

Time 17:51 Table has an Error. Lunch-Pricing School Total is "At least $0.82 on top of highest student paid price"

March 2022 – SCA, Procurement, USDA Updates & More

February 2022 – Planning for next year

January 2022: Nonprogram Foods – do you know what they are and how to track them?

November 2021: A Focus on Food Allergies

October 2021: Administrative Reviews

May 2021: Getting Ready for Next Year – USDA Waivers and menu tips

April 22, 2022: USDA WAIVERS: Webinar

April 20, 2021: Every Kid Healthy Celebrations

March 2021: Let’s talk about Grains on your menu–bring some popped popcorn with you!

February 2021: A Few of My Favorite Things – Kitchen tools to make your job easier

January 2021: CN Labels and Product Formulation Statements

December 2020: Recipes and Recipe Analysis Workbook

November 2020: Production Records

Resources for Kitchen Counter Conversations are available by contacting dpicndd@nd.gov

March 10, 2026 Webinar

Slide Deck

Free/Reduced Data Posted
- Meals served data also available
Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) essentials
Buy American Reminders

February 10, 2026 Webinar

Slide Deck

Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act
2026 Special Legislative Session
Interdepartmental Communications
- What should an Auth Rep be doing
FSMC and Vended Meals Contracts
- Does this include daycare
Farm to School Update
SEBT Updates

January 13, 2026 Webinar

Slide Deck

Procurement
- Policy
- Forecasting/Cost Analysis
- Types
- Equipment

December 9, 2025 Webinar

Slide Deck

Verification Reminder
New Fiscal Coding
Meal Pattern Updates for Administrators
Bridge Project Updates

November 12, 2025 Webinar

Slide Deck

Verification Process
Focus on Finance
- Resource: Focus on Finance Sheet
Questions on Free/Reduced or Verification

October 14, 2025 Webinar

Slide Deck

Any Questions on Free/Reduced Process
- 30-day Carryover
- Federal Furlogh
Verification Process
Fall 2025 Training and Updates

September 9, 2025 Webinar

Slide Deck

Highlights and Reminders from BTSW
- Buy American
- State 225
- Direct Certification
- Upcoming Training
Verification
Farm to School Updates
You're up for Admin Review

May 28, 2025 Webinar

Slide Deck - Resources

New State 225% Expanded Eligibility Income Guidelines
HB 1132 Whole and 2% Milk in Milk Dispensers
Electronic Free and Reduced Application Requirements
End of the Year Reminders
- Meal Pricing
- SNP Renewal
- Buy American Rules

April 8, 2025 Webinar

Slide Deck

Summer Programs - SFSP and Summer EBT
Continuation of ND Extended Eligibilities
End-of-the-year reminders for kitchens
Upcoming Training and Events for school nutrition staff
Community Eligibility Provision
Direct Certification with Medicaid Update

January 14, 2025 Webinar

Slide Deck

Medicaid Update
Free and Reduced Numbers
Verification Summary Reports
Procurement 2025-26
USDA Local Food for Schools and Childcare Grant Program
Summer EBT Update
LEP Resources
Upcoming ND Legislation

October 1, 2024 Webinar

Slide Deck

Medicaid Update
Verification Process and Verification Summary Report
Farm to School Update

April 9, 2024 Webinar

Slide Deck

Summer Programs – SFSP and Summer EBT
Direct Certification with Medicaid
Continuation of ND Extended Eligibility Guidelines (State Free)
End-of-the-year reminders for kitchens – Inventory and Records Management
Charging for second servings or extra meals & the Nonprogram Revenue Tool
Upcoming Training and Events for school nutrition staff
Procurement Requirements for Schools
School Lunch Hero Day May 3

January 9, 2024 Webinar

Slide Deck

Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Guidelines and Best Practices
After-School Snack Guidelines
Verification Summaries and Free/Reduced Numbers
Procurement updates for 2024-25

October 10, 2023 Webinar

Verification Process and Verification Summary Report
State-Free Applications and Monthly Claims
New Community Eligibility Guidelines (CEP)
New Meal Charge Policy is required (HB 1494, Anti-Lunch Shaming)
Farm to School updates and Census

Summer EBT 2025 - Guidance For CEP and Provision Schools

Slide Deck
Summer EBT Office Hours 2 pm CST
- Jan 30th, Feb 6th, Feb 13th, Feb 20th, and Feb 27th

State 200 Refresh and Medicaid Direct Certification Recording

North Dakota Department of Public Instruction Farm to School Webinar Series 2024

This Farm to School webinar series is hosted by Amanda Olson, Farm to School Specialist in the Child Nutrition and Food Distribution office, along with featured speakers from NDDPI and the North Dakota Department of Agriculture. This is a 5-part series that focuses on various topics in Farm to School, including procurement, ND Local Foods Directory, Local Wellness Policy, grants, resources, and idea sharing. If you have any questions about Farm to School, please reach out to Amanda Olson, at dpicnfd@nd.gov.

Session 1 Back to Basics Farm to School - 02/15/2024

Session 2 North Dakota Local Foods - 02/22/2024

Session 3 Farm to School Procurement- 02/29/2024

Session 4 Farm to School Brainstorm- 03/07/2024

Session 5 The Future of North Dakota Farm to School- 03/14/2024

USDA MEMOS

USDA Memos	Title	Main Point
SP05-2006	2026 Appropriations Act: Effect on Child Nutrition Programs	Provides reminders on flexible vegetable crediting at breakfast, continued prohibitions on using chicken, or seafood products from China, unchanged Paid Lunch Equity rules applying only to programs with a negative fund balance, and the requirement for two annual health inspections for every school kitchen and service area.
SP 04-2006	Community Eligibility Provision (CEP	Reminds LEAs that June 30 is the statutory deadline to elect the Community Eligibility Provision for the upcoming school year—and outlines required annual CEP notification and public posting obligations under federal regulations
SP 03-2006	Incorporating Local Beef into Child Nutrition Program Meals	Provides guidance, resources, and strategies—including procurement, funding, food safety, crediting, and technical assistance—to help integrate locally produced beef into school and child nutrition program meals.
SP 02-2026	Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2025-2030 – Eat Real Food	These Guidelines place whole, nutrient dense food back at the center of our diets
SP 01-2026	Expanded Fluid Milk Options for School Lunch	USDA now allows whole and reduced-fat milk in school LUNCH (not breakfast or Snack) under the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act.
SP 18- 2025	Guidance on Fees for Electronic Payment Services in the School Meal Programs	Rescinds USDA memo SP 04-2025; Clarifies current requirements for fees for electronic payment services and provides best practices
SP 17-2025	Reimbursement for Off-Site Meal Consumption	Clarifies off site meal service for field trips or consumption for work study
SP 16-2025	Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program: Allocation of Funds for Fiscal Year 2026	North Dakota was awarded $2,702,301 for SY 2025-2026
SP 15-2025	2025 Enhancing CNP Meal Standards	States can add more restrictive meal pattern requirements, such as no dyes, less ultra processed food
SP 14-2025	Offer versus Serve Flexibilities for the National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program	Encouraging schools to use - With some tips
SP 13- 2025	Full Year Continuing Approp & Ext Act, Effect on Child Nutrition Programs	Crediting veg in Breakfast/no Chinese chicken/seafood & clarifying PLE exemption guidance
SP 12 - 2025	Paid Lunch Equity Guidance for 2025-2026	Exemption is zero or positive balance in Nonprofit School Food Service Account as of June 30, 2024; If balance was negative, PLE tool must be completed.
SP 11 - 2025	Using Federal Funds to purchase local foods	Reminder: Nonprofit School Food Service account funds have always been allowed to purchase local food
SP 10-2025	Rescission of Guidance on Promoting Access to Voting through the Child Nutrition Programs	Rescinded memo from 2022
SP 09-2025	Buy American	10% cap Waiver, if needed
SP 08-2025	Non congregate meal service SFSP	Clarifies more operational details for serving rural noncongregate meals through SFSP
SP 07-2025	Accept RD signatures on Medical Statements	A Registered Dietitian can sign meal modifications
SP 06-2025	NSLP Equipment Grants	Use of funds for Installation is encouraged
SP 05-2025	Accepting Processed Product Documentation	Reviews the requirements for Child Nutrition (CN) labels/Product Formulation Statements (PFS) as menu documentation
SP 04-2025	Fees for Electronic Payments	Rescinded
SP 03-2025	Substituting Veg for Grain/ Tribal Only	1/2 c veg can sub as 1 oz grain; Doesn’t count as veg subgroup/must still meet veg component and weekly subgroups for a reimbursable meal. Use of prairie turnip, breadfruit, squash, taro; align with culturally relevant, local food preferences
SP 02-2025	Substituting Veg at Breakfast with Q and A	Substituting fruit with vegetable 1 day/wk = any veg subgroup;
SP 01-2025	Fluid milk requirements	Milk requirements for each program; parents can request allowable substitution