The Texas Department of Agriculture and the Texas Association for School Nutrition are excited to announce the winners of the 2026 Texas Fruit & Vegetable Day Contest. 

Congratulations to the following school districts: 

• First Place: McLeod ISD 

• Second Place: Beeville ISD 

• Third Place: Culberson County-Allamoore ISD 

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The 2025-2026 Seamless Summer Option (SSO) review schedule is available on SquareMeals. 

Could not make it to MegaCon this year? Great news! You asked, and we listened. We are bringing the most in-demand conference sessions straight to you through our MegaCon Webinar Series.

Thresholds & Tactics: School Nutrition Purchasing in 2026 
July 8, 2026 | 2 p.m. – 3 p.m. (Central Time) via Microsoft Teams Webinar
Register Here: Thresholds & Tactics: School Nutrition Purchasing in 2026 Registration Link

Training Best Practices: Smaller Trainings for Bigger Impact 
July 22, 2026 | 2 p.m. – 3 p.m. (Central Time) via Microsoft Teams Webinar
Register Here:  Training Best Practices: Smaller Trainings for Bigger Impact Registration Link

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The 2026-2027 Administrative Review (AR) and Procurement Review (PR) schedule can be found on SquareMeals.

The Attachment B Upload module in TX-UNPS opens on July 1, 2026. Contracting entities (CEs) operating standard counting and claiming at all or some of the schools in the CE, CEP at some schools in the CE, Provision 2 in the base year at some but not all schools in the CE, and RCCIs with day students are required to submit the following documents:

• School meal application template

• School meal application instructions

• Template letters notifying the household of their eligibility

CEs operating CEP district-wide or Provision 2 not in the base year district-wide, or an RCCI without day students, are not required to complete the Attachment B Upload module in TX-UNPS.

On May 8, 2026, USDA published the Final Rule: Expanding Fluid Milk Options in Child Nutrition Programs, which will codify in regulation specific milk flexibilities that were first announced in the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act of 2025. The Act allowed for the service of whole and reduced-fat (2%) milk to children ages 2 and up who receive school lunches through the National School Lunch Program (NSLP).

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June’s important USDA Foods updates for schools include information and resources to help prepare for PY27, along with ESC support. 

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School districts are invited to attend an in-depth 6-hour Local Wellness Policy training designed to help strengthen and implement effective policies.

This training is offered as part of a USDA-funded initiative that empowers high school students to help improve their school environment.

Participants are encouraged to bring a copy of their district’s Local Wellness Policy to review and work through during this hands-on session. 

Training Opportunities:
To learn more about the two training opportunities, please click the links below:

• McAllen- June 23, 2026

• Spring- July 31, 2026

The application is now open for the 2026-2027 school year. The program year (PY) for NSLP is now set to default to PY27 in TX-UNPS. Please take note of the program year in which you are updating the application packet to ensure that the correct program year is being updated. 

If you wish to participate, please submit the application in TX-UNPS at this time. Technical Assistance in completing the SNP application is available by contacting your local Education Service Center (ESC).

Renewing Contracting Entities:
Please click here for all program-application-related information and updates.

The due date to elect Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) for the 2026-27 Program Year (PY) is JUNE 30, 2026. The only way to elect CEP is to submit the application packet in TX-UNPS on or before June 30, 2026.

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TDA has published new Instruction documents for the H4529.1 (Authorization to Transfer USDA Foods for Further Processing) and H1638 (Report of Loss of USDA Foods). Both Instruction documents were updated to fix outdated links to the online forms.

Refer to the NSLP, TEFAP, CSFP, and FDP Administration/Forms pages on SquareMeals to access the updated instructions to the H1638 form. Refer to the FDP Administration/Forms page to view the updated H4529.1 instructions.

The ARM has been revised to reflect the Final Rule: Expanding Fluid Milk Options in Child Nutrition Programs. This rule expands fluid milk options for school nutrition program operators in the NSLP (including SSO, ASCP, Smart Snacks, and preschool), SBP (including preschool), CACFP, and SMP.

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TDA has removed Section 14a, USDA Foods Processing, from the Administrator's Reference Manual (ARM). This section will now exist as a separate resource titled “USDA Foods Processor Handbook.” TDA implemented non-substantive reformatting and clarification throughout, most notably updating “Food and Nutrition Service” to “Food and Nutrition Administration.”

You can find the USDA Processor Handbook on SquareMeals.

TDA has published a minor change to the fluid milk substitute worksheet to account for expanded milk choice options in all School Nutrition Programs. The updated form can be found on the National School Lunch Program Administration/Forms page of SquareMeals.