Child and Adult Care Food Program · Maryland
Maryland CACFP — State Agency, Sponsor Requirements, and Meal Pattern Overview
Maryland participates in the federal Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) under USDA Food and Nutrition Service rules. The program is administered locally by Maryland State Department of Education, Office of School and Community Nutrition Programs. Below is the current state agency contact, what sponsoring organizations need to know before applying, and a summary of the USDA meal patterns every site in Maryland must follow.
Maryland CACFP State Agency
- Agency
- Maryland State Department of Education
- Division
- Office of School and Community Nutrition Programs
- Phone
- (410) 767-0199
- Official CACFP page
- https://marylandpublicschools.org/programs/Pages/School-Community-Nutrition/CACFP/index.aspx
- FNS Region
- Mid-Atlantic Regional Office — USDA FNS Mid-Atlantic
Who Can Participate in CACFP in Maryland
Any public or private nonprofit organization operating one of the following in Maryland may apply to MSDE to become a CACFP sponsor or independent center:
- Child care centers — licensed centers serving infants through age 12.
- Family day care homes — licensed homes operating under an approved Maryland sponsoring organization.
- Head Start and Early Head Start programs federally funded to serve low-income preschoolers.
- At-risk afterschool programs in area-eligible Maryland neighborhoods, serving suppers and snacks to children through age 18.
- Emergency shelters serving children and youth experiencing homelessness.
- Outside-school-hours care for school-age children before or after school.
- Adult day care centers operating non-residential programs for functionally impaired or older adults.
How to Apply as a Maryland CACFP Sponsor
- Confirm you meet federal eligibility under 7 CFR 226 and any additional Maryland state licensing or nonprofit status requirements.
- Review the sponsor application packet published on the MSDE CACFP page.
- Complete the required sponsor training. In Maryland, training is delivered directly by MSDE and includes meal pattern, civil rights, recordkeeping, and financial management modules.
- Submit the sponsor application along with your management plan, budget, outside employment policy, and any required licenses to MSDE.
- Pass the pre-approval visit and enter into the sponsor agreement. Once approved you may begin claiming meals served according to the USDA CACFP meal pattern.
USDA CACFP Meal Patterns Used in Maryland
Every CACFP site in Maryland — whether a family day care home, child care center, Head Start, or adult day care — serves meals that meet the federal CACFP meal pattern. The pattern is age-specific. Pick your age group below for the full requirement table and minimum serving sizes.
Infants Birth through 5 Months
0-5 months · Breakfast, lunch/supper, snack
Infants 6 through 11 Months
6-11 months · Breakfast, lunch/supper, snack
Children Ages 1-2
1-2 · Breakfast, lunch/supper, snack
Children Ages 3-5
3-5 · Breakfast, lunch/supper, snack
Children Ages 6-12
6-12 · Breakfast, lunch/supper, snack
Children Ages 13-18 (At-Risk Afterschool Only)
13-18 · Breakfast, lunch/supper, snack
Adult Participants
Adults · Breakfast, lunch/supper, snack
Maryland State Agency Monitoring and Reviews
MSDE conducts CACFP administrative reviews at least every three years for all sponsors it oversees in Maryland, as required by 7 CFR 226.6(m). These reviews cover meal counts, meal pattern compliance, civil rights, recordkeeping, claims accuracy, and financial management.
Sponsors in Maryland are also required to monitor each of their child care or day care home facilities three times per year, with at least two of those reviews unannounced and one including a meal service observation.
Need summer meals in Maryland?
CACFP covers year-round care. When school is out, Maryland sponsors often also run the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) or sun-meals non-congregate service. See the Maryland SFSP state page for the state agency and summer meal rules.
Build compliant CACFP menus for your Maryland site
CrEATe is a free CACFP menu planner built for sponsors in all 50 states. Generate compliant breakfast, lunch, supper, and snack menus, validate meal patterns automatically, and export audit-ready production records for your Maryland state reviews.