MEAL PATTERN FOR CHILDREN - Ages 1-12 Years, 13-18 Years - Breakfast, Lunch and Supper, Snack

Oct 10, 2026

Meal pattern guidance for Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) meal service in Illinois, detailing required meal components and food item amounts across age groups: ages 1-2, 3-5, 6-12, and 13-18. Covers breakfast, lunch, and supper, specifying selection rules for reimbursable meals and presenting fluid milk, vegetables/fruits, meat/meat alternates, and grains/bread equivalents. Includes snack component requirements plus notes on offer versus serve, allowed milk types, juice limits, whole grain-rich expectations, cereal and yogurt added sugar limits, and grains/bread criteria and identification.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages6

Reading Time15 min

AccessFree to download

Breakfast

Lunch and Supper

Snack

Notes

Milk, juice, sugar limits, and serving rules

Grain/Bread requirements and WGR criteria

Identifying whole grains and minimum serving sizes

MEAL PATTERN FOR CHILDREN – Ages 1 through 12 Years, 13 through 18 Child and Adult Care Food Program Illinois State Board of Education Breakfast (select all three components for a reimbursable meal) | Meal Components and Food Items | Ages
1-2 | Ages
3-5 | Ages
6-12 | Ages
13-181,2 | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Fluid Milk3 | 4 fluid oz | 6 fluid oz | 8 fluid oz | 8 fluid oz | | Vegetables, fruits, or portions of both4 | ¼ cup | ½ cup | ½ cup | ½ cup | | Grains5,6,7,11, 12 | ½ oz eq | ½ oz eq | 1 oz eq | 1 oz eq | Lunch and Supper (Select all ﬁve components for a reimbursable meal) | Meal Components and Food Items | Ages
1-2 | Ages
3-5 | Ages
6-12 | Ages
13-18 1,2 | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Fluid Milk3 | 4 fluid oz | 6 fluid oz | 8 fluid oz | 8 fluid oz | | Meat/meat alternates8 | 1 oz eq | 1 ½ oz eq | 2 oz eq | 2 oz eq | | Vegetables4 | 1/8 cup | ¼ cup | ½ cup | ½ cup | | Fruits4,9 | 1/8 cup | ¼ cup | ¼ cup | ¼ cup | | Grains 5,7,11, 12 | ½ oz eq | ½ oz eq | 1 oz eq | 1 oz eq | Snack (Select two of the ﬁve components for a reimbursable meal) 10 | Meal Components and Food Items | Ages
1-2 | Ages
3-5 | Ages
6-12 | Ages
13-18 1,2 | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Fluid Milk3 | 4 fluid oz | 4 fluid oz | 8 fluid oz | 8 fluid oz | | Meat/meat alternates8 | ½ oz eq | ½ oz eq | 1 oz eq | 1 oz eq | | Vegetables4 | ½ cup | ½ cup | ¾ cup | ¾ cup | | Fruits4 | ½ cup | ½ cup | ¾ cup | ¾ cup | | Grains (oz eq)5,7,11, 12 | ½ oz eq | ½ oz eq | 1 oz eq | 1 oz eq | NOTES • ¹Offer versus serve is an option for at-risk afterschool meal program participants only. Offer versus serve is not allowed at snack. • ² Participants 13 to 18 years of age may only be served by at-risk afterschool meal programs and emergency shelters. • ³ Must be unflavored whole milk for children age one; unflavored whole milk, unflavored reduced-fat milk, unflavored low-fat (1%) milk, or unflavored fat-free (skim) milk for children two through five years; unflavored or flavored whole, reduced-fat, low-fat, or fat-free milk for children 6 years and older. Breastmilk is an allowable substitute for milk for children of any age. • ⁴Juice may only be served at one meal or snack per day. Juice must be pasteurized, and 100% juice. • ⁵At least one serving per day across all meals and/or snacks must be whole grain-rich. • ⁶ Meat and meat alternates may be used to meet the entire grains component at breakfast a maximum of three times per week. One ounce of meat/meat alternate is equal to one ounce equivalent of grains. If yogurt is served as a M/MA, please see note 8 below. • ⁷ Breakfast cereal must contain no more than six grams of added sugars per dry ounce. • ⁸Yogurt must contain no more than 12 grams of added sugars per six ounces (two grams of added sugars per ounce) . • ⁹A second different vegetable may be served to meet the entire fruit component. • ¹⁰Only one of the two meal components for snack may be a beverage. • 11Sponsors and sites serving primarily American Indian or Alaska Native participants can substitute any vegetable to meet the grain requirement. A vegetable can be used to meet the daily whole grain-rich requirement as long asthe minimum serving size is met. In order to meet one ounce equivalent of grains, sponsors must serve one-half cup of vegetables or one cup of leafy greens. Another vegetable must be served to meet the vegetable requirement if using this flexibility. • 12 Grain-Based Desserts are NOT allowed in the CACFP. GRAIN/BREAD REQUIREMENTS CRITERIA FOR DETERMINING ACCEPTABLE GRAINS/BREADS: The item must be enriched or whole-grain or made from enriched or whole-grain, meal or flour. If it is a cereal, the product must be enriched, whole-grain, or fortified. WHAT IS WHOLE GRAIN-RICH (WGR)? Whole grain-rich foods contain 100% whole grains, or at least 50% whole grains, and the remaining grains are enriched. IDENTIFYING WHOLE GRAINS (This is not

FAQs

What components are required for a reimbursable breakfast in CACFP?

Breakfast requires selecting all three components: fluid milk, vegetables/fruits (or portions of both), and grains equivalents.

What must be selected for a reimbursable lunch or supper meal?

Lunch and supper require selecting all five components: fluid milk, meat/meat alternates, vegetables, fruits, and grains equivalents.

How does CACFP define whole grain-rich (WGR) and what are the main criteria?

Whole grain-rich foods contain 100% whole grains or at least 50% whole grains, with remaining grains being enriched. Grains can be identified using label claims and ingredient-list criteria, including requirements for whole grains being listed first (or second after water) and documented guidance for mixed dishes.

Oct 10, 2026

Uploaded by Maya Linwood