ACTION REQUIRED: The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Food and Nutrition Service recently updated its Civil Rights webpage resulting in changes to the internal hyperlinks within the Nondiscrimination Statement (NDS) as well as the USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form. As a result, CEs must update the electronic versions of the NDS with the English and/or Spanish versions no later than January 31, 2021.
More information about claims processing in TX-UNPS is now available.
Please take action to ensure you are able to continue to access digital resources from the Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA), including SquareMeals.org, MENU Module, and TX-UNPS without error. Click here for more information!
Eligible applicants have the opportunity to win one of four equipment grants (the Winston Equipment Grant, the Vulcan Equipment Grant, the Hobart Equipment Grant, or the Collection Grant).
TDA is providing guidance updates regarding the operational impact of these USDA nationwide waivers. Contracting entities should review the Meal Service Options guidance for SY 2020-2021. See the latest Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) for most up-to-date guidance.
USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) is extending a suite of nationwide waivers for the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) and Seamless Summer Option (SSO) through the entire 2020-2021 school year.
A federal court ruling earlier this year has reversed several NSLP/SBP meal pattern flexibilities. As a result the following meal pattern changes are effective immediately. Follow this link for more information.
We want to express our most sincere gratitude for your ongoing commitment to provide meals to those who need them most. Your heroic efforts make a difference in your community every day, and we applaud you for your dedication. We recognize your valiant efforts and want to say a sincere Thank You!
Due to the impacts of COVID-19, the Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA) will not be taking “And Justice For All..." (AJFA) poster orders through TX-UNPS and will not be distributing posters to contracting entities (CE). Locally printed paper copies AJFA posters may substituted as necessary.
The Texas Department of Agriculture has received some waivers from USDA to support the continued operation of meal service in response to coronavirus. Other waivers are not yet approved. Any information regarding USDA waivers related to meal service will be available at SquareMeals.org/coronavirus along with further instructions.
The National Food Service Management Institute was renamed the Institute of Child Nutrition (ICN) in 2015. If you’re searching for the education, research and training ICN provides, go to www.theicn.org. The Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA) is working to ensure all links on SquareMeals.org that reflect the organization's original name are updated to send users to ICN.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) provides state agencies with the option to request a statewide waiver of the Administrative Review cycle for the School Nutrition Programs (SNPs). TDA is requesting a statewide waiver from USDA to perform SNP Administrative Reviews on a four-year cycle and to waive the Seamless Summer Option (SSO) reviews for CEs with no findings during an Administrative Review conducted in the same school year.