Proudly following the guidelines.

The USDA's Food & Nutrition Service (FNS) sets the meal-pattern requirements that define what a healthy, age-appropriate meal looks like across every federal child-nutrition program. It's the baseline all of our menus are built on.

• Every meal includes the required components — grains, fruit, vegetables, protein and dairy.
• Age-based portion sizes so toddlers, preschoolers and school-age kids each get the right amount.
• Whole-grain-rich options prioritised over refined grains.
• Sensible limits on added sugar, sodium and saturated fat.

CACFP is the federal program most daycares and Pre-K centres are reimbursed through. Meeting its standards is exactly what keeps your program compliant — and funded — at every review.

• Meal patterns tailored to infants and the 1–2, 3–5 and 6–12 age groups.
• A wider variety of vegetables and fruits, with juice strictly limited.
• Meat / meat-alternate and whole-grain requirements at the right meals.
• Menu records and documentation that make audits painless.

For Illinois schools, ISBE layers state school-meal rules on top of the federal standards — the requirements your district is actually held to at inspection.

• Component and serving-size rules aligned to National School Lunch & Breakfast patterns.
• Offer-versus-serve guidance so kids build a reimbursable plate.
• Alignment with local wellness and nutrition-education policies.
• Record-keeping built for state review from day one.

MyPlate is the USDA's simple visual guide to a balanced plate — the everyday model our dietitians use to shape menus kids actually finish.

• Half the plate fruits and vegetables, in genuine variety.
• About a quarter whole grains and a quarter lean protein.
• Low-fat or fortified dairy alongside every meal.
• Right-sized portions for growing bodies — not adult plates.