Beginning June 8, 2026, Milk requirements in the CACFP are as follows:.
Milk Requirements:
• Age 1: Unflavored whole milk
• Ages 2-5: Unflavored whole, 2%, 1%, or fat-free milk
• Ages 6+: Whole, 2%, 1%, or fat-free milk (flavored or unflavored)
For additional guidance and updated milk requirements, review the free Milk in the CACFP resource. 
Each day, more than 4.2 million children and 138,000 adults receive nutritious meals and snacks through the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP).
The Child and Adult Care Food Program is a federal program funded by the USDA (US Dept of Agriculture) that provides reimbursements for nutritious meals and snacks to eligible children and adults who are enrolled for care at participating child care centers, day care homes, and adult day care centers.
The Illinois Child Care Bureau is a non-profit sponsor organization of the CACFP, working under the direction of the Illinois State Board of Education. We help day care home providers access this critically important program. We can walk you through the necessary steps to enroll in the program and guide you through the process so that you can start getting the assistance you need to successfully run your business.
For home day care providers to be partially reimbursed for meals served in their homes, they must comply with the USDA Meal Pattern Requirements. For children aged 1-12, find the list of creditable foods here. For children aged Birth-11 months, find the list here. Our staff can help guide you in the required meal components necessary to make a valid claim.
CACFP participants are required to record meals/snacks and attendance daily as well as maintaining child enrollment forms. Our software program, KidKare, makes it easy to keep accurate records and submit claims by using any device with internet connection — Smart Phone, tablet, or desktop including Android, iPhone, iPad, PC, and Mac.
CACFP Regulations stipulate that each provider must be reviewed three times during each fiscal year, typically once each trimester: Oct 1-Jan 31; Feb 1-May 31; and June 1-Sept 30. Two reviews are unannounced and one is announced. Our monitors will visit your day care home to ensure that meals and attendance agree with submitted claims; provide training and answer questions about program requirements; and assist providers on successful participation in the CACFP.
A day care home provider may claim a maximum of 2 main meals and 1 snack or 2 snacks and 1 main meal per child per day. On the first day of the month, providers will review the previous month’s menus and attendance. If the information is correct and complete, you will submit your food program claim online via KidKare.
In Illinois, the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) is administered by the Illinois State Board of Education and funded by USDA (United States Department of Agriculture) for cash reimbursement to licensed and license-exempt day care home providers for serving nutritious meals and snacks to children in their care.
ICCB provides FREE training opportunities for its providers. Providers under the sponsorship of the Illinois Child Care Bureau review the material online, then take a quiz which will result in their receipt of an email stating the amount of training time received, date and time stamped.
Are you interested in seeing what ICCB has to offer professional day care home providers? Go to Sample Training and Quiz to see a sample training packet and take a quiz.
At the Illinois Child Care Bureau, we have been serving day care home providers and the children in their care since 1984.
ICCB supports hundreds of licensed day care home providers, IDHS license-exempt day care home providers and thousands of working parents/guardians with young children every day!
You pay NO FEE for our services. The program is administered by the Illinois State Board of Education and funded by U.S. Department of Agriculture.
The Illinois Child Care Bureau (ICCB) delivers partial reimbursement to day care home providers for serving nutritious meals and snacks to children ages 0 – 12 years.
Creditable Menus in CACFP
KidKare is the online claiming method for day care home providers to access Child and Adult Care Food Program funds. KidKare is free, user-friendly, works on a Mac/PC/smartphone/iPad/tablet – anything with an internet connection. You can use most major browsers too.
To learn how to use it, please read How to Use KidKare Guide — or view some short training videos at KidKare.com.
Need your login and password? Call the ICCB office at (773)444-0115 or send an email to info@illinoischildren.com.
Our job is to help you be successful! We can assist you with enrollment forms, record keeping, claims submissions, state training requirements, meal planning, and more. Illinois Child Care Bureau’s friendly, knowledgeable staff is available Monday – Friday from 8:30 am – 4:00 pm.
In accordance with Federal 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), age, disability, and reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity.
Program information may be made available in languages other than English. Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication for program information (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, and American Sign Language) should contact the responsible State or local Agency that administers the program or USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TTY) or contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339.
To file a program discrimination complaint, a complainant should complete a Form AD-3027, USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form, which can be obtained online, at www.usda.gov/sites/default/files/documents/usda-program-discrimination-complaint-form.pdf, from any USDA office, by calling (866) 632-9992, or by writing a letter addressed to USDA. The letter must contain the complainant’s name, address, telephone number, and a written description of the alleged discriminatory action in sufficient detail to inform the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights (ASCR) about the nature and date of an alleged civil rights violation. The completed AD-3027 form or letter must be submitted to USDA by: mail: U.S. Department of Agriculture Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights 1400 Independence Avenue, SW Washington, D.C. 20250-9410; or fax: (833) 256-1665 or (202) 690-7442; or email: program.intake@usda.gov.
This institution is an equal opportunity provider.
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