About the After School Snack Program
The After School Snack Program is a federally assisted program that operates in the same manner as the National School Lunch Program, providing free or reduced price snacks to eligible children after the regular school day ends. Schools are eligible to participate in the Afterschool Snack Program if they participate in NSLP and sponsor or operate the afterschool care program providing regularly scheduled educational or enrichment activities in a supervised environment.
Participating schools will receive cash reimbursements from the U.S. Department of Agriculture in return for serving snacks that meet Federal requirements.
Afterschool Snack Guideline Summary
The National School Lunch Program (NSLP) now offers cash reimbursement to help schools serve snacks to children after their regular school day ends. Afterschool snacks give children a nutritional boost and draw them into supervised activities that are safe, fun and filled with learning opportunities. Afterschool snacks help ensure that children receive the nutrition they need to learn, play and grow. Organized, structured, and supervised programs that provide snacks allow children to think and behave better, and help them make the grade! All afterschool snacks must meet Federal meal requirements, though decisions about which specific foods to serve and how they are prepared are made by local school food authorities.
Afterschool Snack Requirements
In order for snacks to be reimbursed they must contain at least two of the four components; a serving of milk a serving of meat/meat alternate, a serving of vegetables or fruit, or a serving of grain.
| Category | Serving | ||
|---|---|---|---|
 Fruit & Vegetables (cups) |
3/4 Cup | ||
A serving of fruits or vegetables is ¾ cup, and can be met with fresh, frozen, canned or 100% juice. |
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 Grains (oz. eq.) |
1 slice, 1/2 cup cooked, 3/4 cup dry | ||
A serving of grain could be 1 slice of whole grain or enriched bread, ½ cup cooked cereal or ¾ cup dry cereal. |
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 Meat/Meat Alternative (oz. eq.) |
1oz. | ||
A serving of meat/meat alternate is 1 oz. eq. |
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 Milk (cups) |
1 Cup | ||
A serving of milk counts as 1 cup of fat-free or low-fat milk. |
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Per Meal Reimbursement
Schools participating in the afterschool snack program will be reimbursed per snack served. Area eligible schools will be reimbursed at the free rate. Schools that are not area eligible must use a child’s free and reduced-priced status to determine eligibility. A site is area-eligible if it is located at a school or in the attendance area of a school where at least 50% of the enrolled children are eligible for free or reduced priced meals.
If a site is area eligible then all of the children at the school receive snacks for free. For example, if a high school with less than 50 percent free or reduced price school enrollment is located in the attendance area of a middle school that has 50 percent or more of the enrolled children eligible for free or reduced price meals, then the afterschool care program located in the high school would be area eligible. Higher reimbursement rates are in place for Alaska and Hawaii than all other states, due to a higher cost of living.
The current cash reimbursement rate for afterschool snacks are:
- Free $.80
- Reduced Price $0.40
- Paid $0.07