A CACFP sponsor is the organization that runs the food program on your behalf: it enrolls your day home or center with the state, trains you on USDA meal patterns, checks your menus and records, files your monthly claim, and passes the reimbursement through to you. In Texas, day homes must participate through a sponsor — and centers can choose to, instead of managing state paperwork themselves.
What the sponsor actually handles
- Enrollment: the permanent agreement (Form H1542 for day homes) and your application to the Texas Department of Agriculture.
- Tier determination: documenting whether your home qualifies for the higher Tier I reimbursement rates.
- Training: USDA meal patterns, recordkeeping, and civil rights requirements — including self-study courses and training videos.
- Menu and record support: monthly menus, meal-count forms, and answers when the meal pattern gets confusing (see our guides on meal pattern changes and CN labels).
- Monitoring visits: the required check-ins that keep you in good standing with the program.
- Claims and payment: compiling your meal counts, filing the monthly claim with TDA, and paying your reimbursement through.
What you still do as the provider
You serve meals that meet the USDA pattern and keep three simple records: daily attendance, meal counts, and menus. Your sponsor supplies the forms and the training; most providers spend only minutes a day on paperwork.
Frequently asked questions
Do I pay the sponsor?
Nutriservice doesn’t charge providers a fee to enroll — sponsors receive administrative funding from the program itself. Always ask any sponsor how their agreement works before signing.
Can I switch sponsors?
Yes. Providers can change sponsoring organizations; the new sponsor signs a new agreement and refiles your application with the state.
How do I pick a good sponsor?
Ask how long they’ve sponsored Texas providers, how training is delivered, how fast reimbursement is passed through after the state pays, and who answers the phone when you have a meal-pattern question. Nutriservice has done exactly this work for Texas children for more than 33 years.
Talk to Nutriservice
We sponsor day homes and daycare centers statewide from Rockwall, Texas. Contact us or call 972-772-3200.