Tom Vilsack, the Secretary of Agriculture, will headline Monday's schedule of events at the 2021 Virtual National Child Nutrition Conference with a keynote address. Reminder: Registration ends on Thursday, April 15.

"We emphasize community in our child care. To us, our child care is an extension of our family. We want every parent, child and sibling to feel that way, too."

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently announced that young adults under the age of 25 experiencing homelessness will now be able to receive meals at emergency shelters participating in the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP). Under normal circumstances, USDA only reimburses shelters for meals served to children, through age 18, but the American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act expanded several nutrition assistance programs to reach the most vulnerable populations experiencing food hardship due to the pandemic, including homeless young adults.

Food for Good is an initiative to create access to healthy food by providing meals that are shelf stable, cold, or ready to heat. Their lines of breakfast and lunch/supper are designed to maximize desirability from kids and ease of use for program administrators. Delivery services range from parcel shipments direct to homes all the way to daily site deliveries in some locations.

Continue to celebrate National Gardening Month with another installment from USDA's Grow It, Try It, Like It! series. Introduce spinach to the children in your care with a week's worth of activities, crafts, recipes and more.

Thank you to USDA, MyPlate and Share Our Strength for partnering with and sponsoring the 2021 Virtual National Child Nutrtion Conference. We greatly appreciate their support and are grateful for their continued partnership.

Here's another recipe to add when introducing spinach to children. It's great on its own, or with other delicious #CACFPCreditable recipes like Jollof Rice and Kati Kati Chicken.

Do you know the benefits of serving certain vegetables raw versus cooked? If you're an NCA member, you're able to download, print and share this educational worksheet for free.