USDA Food Program

Good nutrition is an essential building block in promoting the cognitive development of children. The United States Congress established the Child Care Food Program in 1968 to help ensure the provision of proper nutrition to a growing number of young children receiving a significant portion of their daily food intake in childcare settings. The program helps children develop desirable eating habits and learn about food choices at an early age.

The Child Care Food Program is administered in Florida by the Department of Health, Bureau of Child Nutrition Programs. The bureau receives funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service, to pay for meals provided to children and to administer the program through contractual partnerships with children's service organizations. Meals are provided in childcare centers, day care homes, after school programs and homeless shelters. There are significant differences in the conditions for participation and the required procedures for opening the Child Care Food Program in these different facilities.

Staff who are responsible for the feeding of children enrolled in participating child care centers provide a crucial service to their communities. The Florida Department of Health seeks to inspire the dedication and commitment of caregivers to ensure that the meals claimed for reimbursement meet the Child Care Food Program requirements, and that mealtime is a pleasant, nutritious and sociable experience for the enrolled children.