State, Local and Tribal Agencies (Respondents)

				OMB Control No: 0584-XXXX Expiration Date: XX/XX/20XX

Appendix F1. Menu Planning Survey

1. How does <SITE NAME> provide summer meals and/or snacks?

SELECT ONLY ONE.

Prepare or cook meals on-site or at a central kitchen  GO TO QUESTION 2

Purchase meals from a private commercial vendor

Purchase meals from a school or school food authority (SFA)

Other (PLEASE SPECIFY):

1a. Why do you choose to purchase meals for <SITE NAME> instead of preparing them on-site or at a central kitchen?

SELECT ONE OR MORE.

Do not have kitchen facilities and equipment

Do not have staff to prepare meals

It is cost efficient to purchase meals

It allows us to serve a wider variety of foods

Other (PLEASE SPECIFY):

1b. Who delivers the food to <SITE NAME> everyday?

Sponsor or someone hired by sponsor

Private vendor/company

<SITE NAME> staff or someone hired by <SITE NAME>

Other (PLEASE SPECIFY):

2. In serving summer meals to children, which of the following meal patterns does <SITE NAME> follow?

SELECT ONLY ONE.

Summer Food Service Program (SFSP)  GO TO QUESTION 2c

Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP)  GO TO QUESTION 2c

National School Lunch Program (NSLP)/School Breakfast Program (SBP), including Seamless Summer Option (SSO)

2a. Are the menus at <SITE NAME> during the summer …

Mostly/exactly the same as the menus during the school year

Somewhat different than the menus during the school year

Completely different than the menus during the school year

2b. Why does <SITE NAME> use National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and/or School Breakfast Program (SBP) menus during the summer?

SELECT ONE OR MORE.

No need to re-train staff

School menus provide good variety

Do not want to plan new menus

Children like the school-year menus

Cost effective

Use same vendor as during the school year

Other (PLEASE SPECIFY):

2c. Does <SITE NAME> use cycle menus?

A cycle menu is a menu that is different each day but repeats after a certain number of days or weeks.

Yes  What is the length of the cycle for the menu?

1 week

2 weeks

3 weeks

4 weeks

Other (PLEASE SPECIFY): ___________________________________

No

3. Which of the following factors are considered in planning menus for <SITE NAME> for the summer?

SELECT ONE OR MORE.

Nutritional quality of the meal

Availability of foods

Availability of kitchen facilities to prepare and/or store food

Preferences of children

Predominant age of children being served

Types of meals served (i.e., breakfast, lunch, supper, snacks)

Staff cooking or food preparation skills

Food cost

Labor cost

Type of eating facilities available at <SITE NAME>

Local or cultural practices  please list the local or cultural practices that influence menu
planning for <SITE NAME>.

Other (PLEASE SPECIFY):

4. Which of the following menu planning tools and resources have you used to plan summer meals?

SELECT ONE OR MORE.

USDA Team Nutrition materials

USDA MyPlate materials

USDA Healthy Meals Resource System

USDA Summer Meals Toolkit

USDA What’s Cooking?

USDA Mixing Bowl

Institute of Child Nutrition (ICN) materials

Tools and resources developed by the State agency

Other (PLEASE SPECIFY):

I haven’t used any menu planning tools or resources to plan summer meals

5. Are there other tools and resources you need to plan summer meals but do not have?

No

Yes (PLEASE SPECIFY):

6. Did you have any challenges in finding and using menu planning tools and resources?

Yes

No  GO TO QUESTION 7

6a. What were the challenges you had in finding and using menu planning tools and resources?

SELECT ONE OR MORE.

Do not know of any meal planning tools and resources

Do not have staff available to find and use meal planning tools and resources

Do not have internet service to get online materials

Do not know how to get paper copies of materials

Not able to find materials in the language we need

Materials are not written at appropriate level for what we need

Materials are not user-friendly

Other challenge(s) (PLEASE SPECIFY):

7. Did <SITE NAME> purchase any of the following foods from local growers, farmers, processors, and/or manufacturers?

There is no standard definition for the term local. Local foods may be foods that are grown, produced, or processed within a specific location or region, such as within a state or within a certain number of miles from the site

SELECT ONE OR MORE.

Fruits

Vegetables

Fluid Milk

Other dairy (e.g., cheese)

Meat/Poultry

Eggs

Seafood

Plant based protein items such as beans, seeds, nuts

Grains/flour

Bakery Products

Herbs

Other product type (PLEASE SPECIFY):

Did not purchase any local foods  GO TO QUESTION 7b

7a. How often does <SITE NAME> use local foods?

SELECT ONLY ONE.

Every day/almost every day

2 to 3 times per week

Once a week or less

Never

Don’t know/Not sure

7b. Which of the following factors affect your decision to purchase (or not purchase) local foods for <SITE NAME>?

 

SELECT ONE OR MORE.

Cost to purchase local foods

Cost to prepare local foods

Limited availability of local vendors

Limited availability of local foods

Limited storage capacity

Delivery schedules

Not enough staff and equipment to process and/or serve local foods

Food safety concerns and/or requirements prohibit local food purchasing

Other, please specify: ___________________________________________

8. How often do the summer meals and snacks include fresh fruits and vegetables?

Fresh fruits and vegetables are generally in their original form or sliced or peeled to make them easy to eat. Fresh fruits and vegetables are not canned, frozen or dried.

SELECT ONLY ONE.

Every day or almost every day

2 to 3 times per week

Once a week or less

Never

Don’t know/Not sure

9. How often does <SITE NAME> serve USDA Foods (sometimes known as ‘commodity foods’) in summer meals?

SELECT ONE OR MORE.

USDA Foods are not available to <SITE NAME>  GO TO QUESTION 10

Every day or almost every day

2 to 3 times per week

Once a week or less

Never  GO TO QUESTION 10

Don’t know/Not sure  GO TO QUESTION 10

9a. What types of USDA Foods are used to prepare summer meals?

SELECT ONE OR MORE.

Fruits

Vegetables

Other dairy (e.g., cheese)

Meat/Poultry

Eggs

Seafood

Plant based protein items such as beans, seeds, nuts

Grains/flour

Bakery Products

Other product type (PLEASE SPECIFY):

Did not use any USDA foods

10. To what extent are each of the following factors a challenge or not a challenge in planning or preparing meals for <SITE NAME>?

SELECT ONLY ONE BOX PER ROW.

	Not a challenge	Somewhat of a challenge	Challenge	Significant challenge	Not sure
Understanding meal pattern requirements
Availability of foods that meet the requirements
Food cost
Staff time
Equipment to prepare or serve food
Facilities to serve food
Equipment to transport food
Kitchen facilities
Availability of nutritionist or Registered Dietitian
Children’s food preferences
Other (PLEASE SPECIFY):

Thank you for participating in the Summer Meals Study.

Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 20 minutes per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Services, Office of Policy Support, 3101 Park Center Drive, Room 1014, Alexandria, VA 22302 ATTN: PRA (0584-xxxx*). Do not return the completed form to this address.