FNS Documents & Resources

On April 25, 2024, FNS published the final rule, Child Nutrition Programs: Meal Patterns Consistent With the 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. This rule includes minor updates to the Child and Adult Care Food Program and Summer Food Service Program to better align Child Nutrition Program requirements. These updates represent continued progress toward supporting the nutrition quality of school meals, strengthening the Child Nutrition Programs, and advancing USDA’s commitment to nutrition security. 

This rulemaking finalizes long-term school nutrition requirements based on the goals of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2020-2025, robust stakeholder input, and lessons learned from prior rulemakings.

Tools for Schools offers topic-specific policy and resource materials to assist schools in meeting the new nutrition standards. Refer to the latest regulations, find free nutrition education curricula, or get ideas for adding tasty, kid-friendly foods to enhance your school meals program.

This rulemaking proposes long-term school nutrition standards based on the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2020-2025, and feedback the USDA received from child nutrition program stakeholders during a robust stakeholder engagement campaign. 

This report responds to the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, which directs the FNS to provide a report on the amount of added sugars in school meals.

This training guide provides menu planning ideas, crediting information, sample menus, and more, to show school nutrition professionals how to offer meats and meat alternates at school breakfast. 

This webinar is intended for states and school districts that serve direct delivered USDA Foods for child nutrition programs.

This collection is an extension, without change, of a currently approved collection for assisting state agencies to record, track and manage the required training hours in four major areas (nutrition, operations, administration, communications and marketing) to meet the requirements of the Healthy Hunger Free Kids Act (HHFKA) of 2010 Professional Standards Rule.

School meals are giving kids the goodness of whole grains. Whole grains give kids B vitamins, minerals, and fiber to help them feel full longer so they stay alert to concentrate at school. Beginning SY 2019-2020, half of the weekly grains offered must be whole grain-rich and the remaining grain items must be enriched.

A number of tools and resources are available to help schools identify food items that meet Smart Snacks criteria. See the resources below for information about the Smart Snacks requirement, helpful tools, and ways to encourage children to make healthier snack choices that give them the nutrition they need to grow and learn.