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.

These resources provide school nutrition professionals with the knowledge and tools to implement and meet the professional standards requirements within their programs.

Los estándares profesionales son una norma que determina los requisitos anuales de capacitación y criterios de contratación para profesionales en los programas de nutrición escolar. Estas normas brindan estándares profesionales consistentes a nivel nacional y fortalecen la capacidad de los profesionales de la nutrición escolar para desempeñar sus funciones de manera eficaz y eficiente.

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 notice announces the Department's annual adjustments to the Income Eligibility Guidelines to be used in determining eligibility for free and reduced price meals and free milk for the period from July 1, 2021 through June 30, 2022.

This Q&A memorandum is designed to provide an overview of the policies related to the Professional Standards regulations for state and local school nutrition program personnel. 

This notice announces the Department's annual adjustments to the Income Eligibility Guidelines to be used in determining eligibility for free and reduced price meals and free milk for the period from July 1, 2019 through June 30, 2020.

This proposed rule would add four flexibilities to the hiring standards for new school nutrition program directors in small local educational agencies and new school nutrition program state directors under the professional standards regulations for the National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs.

The Special Nutrition Program Operations Study is a multiyear study designed to provide the Food and Nutrition Service with a snapshot of current state and school food authority policies and practices of the school meal programs, including information on school meal standards, competitive foods standards, professional standards, school lunch pricing and accounting, and Smarter Lunchrooms activities.