(TRENTON) -- Children and adults enrolled in day care facilities may be eligible for free meals through the Child and Adult Care Food Program, according to New Jersey Assistant Secretary of Agriculture Joe Atchison.

The Child and Adult Care Food Program is a federally funded program that reimburses sponsoring agencies that provide healthy meals and snacks at no charge to children and adults enrolled in licensed or approved day care facilities or family day care homes.

Meals are available at no separate charge to all enrolled participants in the Child and Adult Care Food Program and are served without regard to race, color, national origin, sex, age, or disability. 

The Child and Adult Care Food Program meal reimbursement funding is provided from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and paid to Sponsoring Organizations through an agreement with the New Jersey Department of Agriculture (state agency), based on monthly claims submitted.

Sponsoring Organizations are eligible public, private nonprofit, and for-profit organizations providing licensed or registered for non-residential day care services.  Such organizations include adult care, childcare, Family Day Care Home Sponsors, afterschool programs, schools, foodbanks, and city government organizations including organizations providing day care services for children with disabilities and/or special health care needs.  For-profit centers may qualify if they receive compensation under Title XX/XIX of the Social Security Act for at least 25% of the total participants who are receiving non-residential care, or 25% of their child participants qualify for free or reduced-price meal benefits.

Interested in applying to CACFP? Begin with completing the NJDA CACFP Outreach and Eligibility Tool.

The Child and Adult Care Food Program is a federal program of the Food and Nutrition Service, United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Find out more about the Child and Adult Care Food Program here.

In accordance with federal civil rights law and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) civil rights regulations and policies, this institution is prohibited from discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex (including gender identity and sexual orientation), disability, age, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity.

Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication for program information (e.g. Braille, large print, audio, American Sign Language, etc.), should contact the Agency (State or local) where they applied for benefits.  Individuals who are deaf, hard of hearing or have speech disabilities may contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339.  Additionally, program information may be made available in languages other than English.

To file a program complaint of discrimination, complete the USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form, (AD-3027) found online at: http://www.ascr.usda.gov/complaint_filing_cust.html, and at any USDA office, or write a letter addressed to the USDA and provide in the letter all the information requested in the form. To request a copy of the complaint form, call (866) 632-9992. Submit your completed form or letter to the USDA by: (1) mail: U.S. Department of Agriculture; Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, D.C. 20250-9410; (2) fax: (202) 690-7442; or (3) email: program.intake@usda.gov.

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