August is National Breastfeeding Month — a time to recognize the families who choose to breastfeed and the providers who support them every day.

If you care for infants in a CACFP-participating program, breastfeeding support is already part of what you do. The CACFP infant meal pattern is designed to encourage breastfeeding, and your role as a provider is a critical part of making it work for families.

Here’s what you need to know.

🍼 Breastmilk in the CACFP: The Basics

The USDA recommends serving breastmilk in place of formula from birth through 11 months. At every infant meal and snack, CACFP requires that breastmilk, iron-fortified infant formula, or a combination of both be served.

A few key points from the USDA CACFP Infant Meal Pattern:

• Breastmilk is the preferred option. The CACFP infant meal pattern encourages breastfeeding to align with WIC, supporting families who choose to breastfeed.
• Flexibility for breastfed infants. For some breastfed infants who regularly consume less than the minimum amount of breastmilk per feeding, a serving of less than the minimum may be offered — with additional breastmilk offered later if the infant will consume more.
• Solid foods are introduced at 6 months — or when the infant is developmentally ready. As a best practice, the USDA recommends that parents or guardians submit a written request regarding when solid foods should be introduced.
• Infant formula must be iron-fortified. If formula is served instead of or alongside breastmilk, it must be iron-fortified. Infant cereal must also be iron-fortified.

The CACFP infant meal pattern is divided into two age groups: birth through 5 months (breastmilk or formula only) and 6 through 11 months (breastmilk or formula plus solid foods). For the full meal pattern table, see the USDA CACFP Infant Meal Pattern.

🧊 Handling and Storing Breastmilk in Your Program

When parents provide breastmilk for their child, proper handling and storage is essential. The USDA incorporated updated breastmilk storage recommendations in CACFP Memo 11-2023, and the CDC’s guidelines for breastmilk storage and preparation are the standard reference for safe handling. Here are the key practices:

• Label all breastmilk with the infant’s name and the date the milk was expressed.
• Store breastmilk in the refrigerator at 40°F or below. Follow the CDC’s storage duration guidelines for specific timeframes.
• Never microwave breastmilk. Microwaving can create hot spots and destroy nutrients. Warm it by placing the container in a bowl of warm water or running it under warm water. (Source: CDC)
• Do not refreeze thawed breastmilk. Once thawed, it should be used within 24 hours (kept refrigerated). (Source: CDC)
• Discard unused breastmilk from a feeding within 2 hours — it cannot be saved for a later feeding. (Source: CDC)
• Communicate with parents about how much milk to send, how it should be labeled, and what happens with unused portions.

For comprehensive guidance on handling both breastmilk and formula in CACFP settings, see the USDA’s Feeding Infants in the CACFP guide. For additional Q&As on the updated guidance, see CACFP Memo 06-2025.

💛 How Providers Can Create a Breastfeeding-Friendly Environment

Supporting breastfeeding goes beyond following the meal pattern. Here are practical ways to make your program welcoming for breastfeeding families:

Make space for nursing and pumping. If a parent needs to nurse or pump during drop-off or pick-up, offer a comfortable, private area. It doesn’t need to be fancy — a chair in a quiet corner with some privacy goes a long way.

Communicate openly with families. Ask parents early in the enrollment process about their feeding plans. Are they exclusively breastfeeding? Combining breastmilk and formula? Planning to transition? Knowing their goals helps you support them.

Be flexible with feeding schedules. Breastfed infants may eat on a different schedule than formula-fed infants. The CACFP allows flexibility for breastfed infants — work with parents to align your feeding times with the infant’s natural rhythm when possible.

Track each infant’s developmental readiness. The CACFP infant meal pattern changes when an infant is developmentally ready for solid foods. Keep records of each infant’s readiness status and feeding preferences so you’re serving the right foods at the right time.

Keep communication logs. Track what the infant consumed at each feeding and share that information with parents at pick-up. This helps breastfeeding parents plan how much milk to send and monitor their baby’s intake.

📋 Crediting Breastmilk in Your CACFP Claims

Breastmilk is fully creditable in the CACFP — whether it’s provided by the parent or by a mother who comes to the facility to nurse. A few things to keep in mind:

• You can claim a reimbursable meal when breastmilk is served, even if the parent provides the milk. The CACFP does not require the facility to supply the breastmilk.
• If a mother comes to nurse at the facility, you may still claim the meal — document that breastmilk was served.
• Document what’s served. Record the breastmilk as part of the infant’s meal on your daily meal count records, just as you would formula.

For detailed Q&As on crediting infant meals, see USDA CACFP Memo 06-2025: Feeding Infants and Meal Pattern Requirements — Questions and Answers.

Important: Always follow your state agency’s guidance on infant feeding documentation and crediting. Requirements may vary by state. Consult the USDA CACFP Infant Meal Pattern and your state agency for the most current requirements.

👶 How KidKare Handles Infant Feeding for CACFP Programs

Tracking infant meals on paper is one of the most time-consuming parts of running a CACFP program. Every infant eats differently — some are on breastmilk only, some are on formula, some are transitioning to solids — and documenting each feeding by hand creates stacks of paperwork that’s hard to organize and easy to get wrong.

KidKare eliminates that. Here’s how:

Record individual menus for every infant. Set a default infant menu for the day, then customize it for each child while taking meal counts. If baby Jane had peas with her formula and infant Kevin had cereal, each gets their own record — no paper forms, no duplicate tracking.

Track developmental readiness by infant. The CACFP infant meal pattern changes when an infant is ready for solid foods. KidKare lets you manage each infant’s details — including their developmentally ready status — so your staff always knows which infants should be offered solids and which are still on breastmilk or formula only.

Generate Infant Feeding Reports automatically. Once menus are recorded, KidKare generates an Infant Feeding Report that lists the menu served to each infant at each meal — with components, foods served, and quantities. Each infant gets a separate page. Download it as a PDF and store it electronically — ready for reviews, audits, or sharing with parents.

Set up infant daily menus separately. Use the Infant Daily Menu to record what’s being served to infants each day, separate from your non-infant menus. This keeps your meal planning organized and ensures infant meals are tracked with the detail the CACFP requires.

Whether you’re a center with a few infants or a sponsor managing dozens of sites with infant programs, these tools take the manual work out of infant feeding documentation — so your staff can focus on the babies, not the paperwork.

Want to see how it works? Book a discovery call →

Not in the food program yet? Find a sponsor and get started for free →

Additional Resources

USDA CACFP Infant Meal Pattern — Meal pattern table by age group
USDA Feeding Infants in the CACFP Guide — Comprehensive training tool covering the infant meal pattern, handling breastmilk and formula, and solid foods
USDA CACFP Memo 06-2025: Feeding Infants Q&As — Updated guidance on feeding infants and meal pattern requirements
NCA: Feeding Infants and Meal Pattern Requirements in the CACFP — Summary of USDA Memo 11-2023 with key takeaways on updated breastmilk storage
CDC Breastmilk Storage and Preparation Guidelines — Safe handling, storage durations, and preparation recommendations
USDA Nutrition Standards for CACFP — Full nutrition standards including infant and child meal patterns
U.S. Breastfeeding Committee — National Breastfeeding Month — Awareness month resources and campaign materials
KidKare: Individual Infant Menus Are Here — How KidKare handles individual infant menu recording
KidKare Knowledge Base: Infant Menus — Step-by-step guide for sponsors and centers
KidKare Knowledge Base: Manage Infant Details — Track developmental readiness and infant feeding preferences