How to ParticipateLearning Support :

Communication

The Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) uses several mediums to communicate Food Distribution activities to School Food Authorities (SFA's).  The Commodity Listserv is used to communicate with all of the SFA's at one time and includes important information regarding CLiCS Preference Surveys, Bonus Commodity Offerings, Food Safety Recalls, and Program Participation updates.  Use the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) Listserv Subscribe/Unsubscribe Form to be included in the Commodity Listserv.

FNS also publishes bulletins focusing on Surveying, Tracking, and Rebating activities.

Fall Bulletin - Minnesota Food Distribution Program - School Year 2008  156Kb (9/27/07)  200Kb (9/27/07)
	The School Year (SY) 2008 Fall Bulletin covers the following topics Fall Surveys, USDA Making Healthy Commodity Improvements, Single Inventory, Tracking Regular Commodities, Regular Commodity Shortages, SY 2007 Commodities Received Report for the Auditor, Rebate Payments, and SY 2007 Rebate Year End Report.
Minnesota Food Distribution Program - October 2006 Bulletin  212Kb (10/10/06)  525Kb (10/10/06)
Minnesota Food Distribution Program - March 2006 Bulletin  43Kb (3/21/06)
Minnesota Food Distribution Program - October 2005 Bulletin  49Kb (10/5/05)
Minnesota Food Distribution Program - August 2005 Bulletin  70Kb (8/25/05)

Planning

In order to be successful, a "Commodity Plan" will need to be developed to first utilize your Commodity Entitlement and then take advantage of Bonus Commodities.  When developing your "Commodity Plan", think about the most effective way with the least amount of cost to obtain the products your students will enjoy.  Think about how the Regular, Fee-For-Service, and Minnesota Rebate Program can utilize Commodity Entitlement.

To do this:

• Know the available amount of Commodity Entitlement.
• Know the timelines of the CLiCS Preference Surveys (Spring & Fall).
• Assess your needs and develop a commodity procurement plan based on your menus and student preferences.
• When CLiCS Preference Surveys  are published, study and review commodities offered in each of the distribution channels, availability of commodities, value of Commodity Entitlement required, and date the survey will close.
• Contact a Foodservice Distributor and inquire about delivering "Regular" USDA commodities and ask for the list of "Products" available on the Minnesota Rebate Program.

Below are resources to assist School Food Authorities with planning:

Calendar of Activities for School Procurement of Commercial and Commodity Foods  78Kb (10/25/05)  78Kb (10/25/05)
	Quarterly checklists for procurement of commercial food products and USDA commodities for the Food Distribution Program (FDP) by schools participating in the School Nutrition Programs.

Surveying

Twice a year School Food Authorities (SFA’s) have an opportunity to utilize their annual Commodity Entitlement, by responding to several CLiCS Preference Surveys once in the spring and again in the fall. SFA’s also have the opportunity to respond to CLiCS Bonus Preferences Surveys when USDA Bonus Commodities become available.

To enable SFA’s to utilize their Commodity Entitlement and/or Bonus Commodities, Minnesota offers three distinct demand driven CLiCS Preference Surveys:

1) CLiCS Regular Commodity Preference Survey, featuring Regular USDA Packaged Commodities;

2) CLiCS Processed Commodity Preference Survey, featuring Fee-For Service Commodities; and

3) CLiCS Products Survey, featuring the Minnesota Rebate Program for commercial Products utilizing commodities.

All three of the CLiCS Preference Survey options are available to all SFA’s. SFA’s determine which of three options best fit their cooking philosophy and enable them to utilize their Commodity Entitlement and/or take advantage of Bonus Commodity offerings. Responding to a CLiCS Preference Survey is where planning turns into action by utilizing the three options outlined below.

CLiCS Regular Commodity Preference Survey
The CLiCS Regular Commodity Preference Surveys offer more than 50 types of dry, canned, and frozen traditional USDA Package Commodities. Regular USDA Packaged Commodities may be packaged with a generic USDA label or commercial label. Surveys are arranged in commodity groups: Group A commodities such as meats, poultry, fruits and vegetables; or Group B commodities such as cheese, flour, pasta, peanut butter and oil.

SFA’s participate in the survey by submitting the desired quantity of cases for the months available for a specific commodity. In addition to responding to the survey, SFA’s must select one of the 17 approved foodservice distributors and coordinate the receipt of the commodities.

Although the CLiCS Regular Commodity Preference Survey can either utilize Commodity Entitlement and/or Bonus Commodities, there is a warehouse fee and distributor-handling fee to receive the USDA Regular Packaged Commodities. Once commodities are ordered with USDA, SFA’s can monitor and track their commodity allocation throughout the school year using the CLiCS Order Summary screen.

CLiCS Processed Commodity Preference Survey
The CLiCS Processed Commodity Preference Survey offers SFA’s the opportunity to divert beef and pork to an approved Processor with the intent to convert a specific commodity into more usable end products for school menus. SFA’s work directly with the Processor and/or their Broker to determine the desired end products, the quantity of raw pounds to divert and the Fee-For-Service charged to acquire the product.

Once a commodity and Processor are identified, SFA’s respond to the spring CLiCS Processed Commodity Preference Survey by submitting the total quantity of pounds of the commodity to be diverted for the entire school year.

The Processor and/or their Broker are available to assist SFA’s with identifying the available end products and calculating the necessary pounds to enter in the respective survey. The SFA’s shall submit an order form with the Processor that corresponds with the quantity entered on the survey. In addition to the Fee-For-Service, a shipping and handle charge will apply. SFA’s track and coordinate with the Processor the receipt of the desired end products.

CLiCS Products Preference Survey
The CLiCS Products Preference Survey features the Minnesota Rebate Program (MRP) for approved commercial products utilizing commodities. The MRP allows SFA’s to utilize Commodity Entitlement with commercial foodservice products available through their foodservice distributor. The MRP provides the Commodity Entitlement to SFA’s through a State administered rebate system. The MRP offers a commodity rebate for over 880 commercial products from 35 manufacturers that utilize cheese, flour, peanut butter, potatoes, non-fat dry milk, oil and poultry.

SFA’s participate in the MRP by submitting planned purchase quantities of approved products offered on the CLiCS Products Preference Survey for the entire school year. After the purchase has been made, SFA’s submit a Rebate Claim in CLiCS and eligible Rebates are paid twice monthly. Once the commodities have been diverted to the manufacturer, SFA’s can monitor and track their available Rebate dollars throughout the school year using the CLiCS Rebate Summary.

Tracking

After responding to the desired CLiCS Preference Surveys, the outcome of tracking is to ensure that School Food Authorities (SFA’s) receive the full value of Commodity Entitlement and Bonus Commodities ordered. Tracking USDA Packaged Regular Commodities throughout the school year enables SFA’s to monitor and coordinate deliveries from the SFA’s chosen distributor. Tracking also assists in the receipt and reconciliation of USDA Packaged Regular Commodities. Tracking begins late in the fall and ends in the spring.

Tracking Tools
Over fifty types of USDA Packaged Regular Commodities are offered to SFA’s. The timing of deliveries and quantities ordered depends on the demand by SFA’s and USDA’s ability to make the purchase. Therefore, deliveries vary and need to be tracked throughout the school year. Below are two tools to enable this process to be effective and efficient:

Year-End Reconciliation
The final reconciliation begins after the last truckload of USDA Regular Packaged Commodities has arrived in Minnesota. Shortly thereafter, SFA’s receive the Commodities Received Report for the Auditor, which is a summary of the information available in the CLiCS “Customer Order Summ” screen. The report details the commodities received during the school year and summarizes the value of Commodity Entitlement and Bonus Commodities. The report is designed to assist SFA’s reconciliation of received commodities. The report also establishes the USDA value of the commodities received. Public school auditors use this report to document the value of the commodities received.

Instructions for Food Distribution Program (FDP) Regular Commodity Tracking Form  12Kb (10/17/05)
Regular Commodity Pricing School Year 2006-2007  38Kb (9/17/07)  16Kb (9/17/07)
	Listing of all commodities offered in School Year 2006-2007 on Preference Surveys along with the per case pricing used to draw down entitlement for SY 2007 for the Food Distribution Program (FDP).
Regular Commodity Pricing School Year 2007-2008  39Kb (10/31/07)  15Kb (10/31/07)
	Listing of all commodities offered in School Year 2007-2008 on Preference Surveys along with the per case pricing used to draw down entitlement for SY 2008 for the Food Distribution Program (FDP).
Regular Commodity Tracking Form (Excel)  50Kb (5/28/08)  67Kb (5/28/08)
	This form is developed/designed to be modified to suit the needs of each individual sponsor in tracking their regular packaged/fee-for-service commodities by removing products not ordered, or adding lines for new items for the Food Distribution Program (FDP).
Sponsor Commodity Over Short Claim Form  102Kb (5/25/07)  310Kb (5/25/07)
	To facilitate schools reconciling the commodities received throughout the year with the data on the CLiCS Customer Order Summary screen for over and short commodities with the distributor, and notifying the Food and Nutrition Service by June 15th if unresolved.

Rebating

1) Invoice Claim

After logging into CLiCS, click on Food Distribution, and then select Rebate and Payment from the list on the left.  Select the red tab at the top of the page, Rebate Invoice, to enter the purchase information by distributor invoice.  Sponsors will need a copy of the actual invoice to keep for their records.  Instructions are available in the FDP CLiCS Manual for entering a Rebate Invoice Claim.

2) Rebate Monthly Claim

Sponsors may request a monthly summary of purchases from their distributor.  In CLiCS, click on Food Distribution, and then select Rebate and Payment from the list on the left.  Select the orange tab at the top of the page, Rebate Monthly, to enter the monthly summary of purchases from the distributor .  Note: Enter the Rebate Monthly Claim by the Calendar Year, NOT by school year.  Instructions are available in the FDP CLiCS Manual for entering a Rebate Monthly Claim.

3) Rebate Monthly Claim Submitted by Distributor

When distributors send a sponsor's monthly purchase record to the Food and Nutrition Service via CLiCS, the Rebate Monthly Claim is automatically created.  The sponsor reviews the Rebate Monthly Claim in CLiCS.  All commercial products purchased within a committed rebate group will appear.  The Rebate Monthly Claim submitted by a distributor will NOT process for payment until the Sponsor checks the Release box located on the rebate claim.  If the rebate claim is incorrect, do NOT release the claim.  To correct the Rebate Monthly Claim, click save, manually make the changes, and release the claim, or ask the distributor to submit a new rebate claim.  To view all of the products surveyed in a claim, click the Save button.  Release the Rebate Monthly Claim after verifying or making corrections.  Instructions are available in the FDP CLiCS Manual for releasing a Rebate Monthly Claim.