8915--Produce for Nutrition and Food Service Base Plus Four Ordering Periods

This Sources Sought Notice is for informational and planning purposes only and shall not be construed as a solicitation or as an obligation or commitment by the Government. This notice is intended strictly for market research. The purpose of this Sources Sought notice is to obtain information from qualified sources with special interest relative to the North American Industry Classification Code (NAICS) 311991 Perishable Prepared Food Manufacturing. The Government will not pay for information received in response to this Sources Sought, nor will the Government compensate any respondent for any cost incurred in developing the information provided. This Sources Sought does not constitute a commitment by the Government. Information provided in response to this market survey will be used for informational purposes only and will not be released. Contractor participation is not a promise of future business with the Government. STATEMENT OF WORK NUTRITION AND FOOD SERVICE PRODUCE CONTRACT CAPTAIN JAMES A. LOVELL FHCC INTRODUCTION: The FHCC is currently seeking a vendor that can provide the service of delivering a variety of fresh (never frozen) produce. CONTRACT TYPE: The expected performance period is a base year of twelve (12) months with four (4) ordering periods. Each ordering period is twelve (12) months. OPTION TO EXTEND: This contract may be extended to four (4), one-year periods at the option of the Government in accordance with FAR 52.217-9, Option to Extend the Term of the Contract, subject to the availability of funds. The Government will evaluate offers for award purposes by adding the total price for all options to the total price for the basic requirement. The Government may determine that an offer is unacceptable if the option prices are significantly unbalanced. Exercise of the option will be based on whatever is the most advantageous to the Government. Evaluation of options shall not obligate the Government to exercise the option. SCOPE OF WORK: Contractor shall provide the produce that are outlined in the information table. The table lists the types of produce FHCC will order with estimated annual volume. SALIENT CHARACTERISTICS/QUALITY STANDARDS FOR PRODUCE: Fresh produce shall have sufficient remaining shelf life (minimum of 3-4 days) commensurate with good commercial practice and shall conform to the Commercial Item Description (CID) for Produce. QUALITY ASSURANCE: Meets standards established by Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA 21 USC Subchapter 9), including our Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) plan. Ingredients for fresh produce shall consist of no additives and will be packaged in their own natural juices (21 USC 348). Unless otherwise specified in the item specification or solicitation, marking shall be in accordance with the best commercial practice. Any commercial or additional labeling, as specified, which complies with the U.S. Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, and regulations promulgated thereunder, is acceptable. Any item not found to meet freshness requirements upon inspection will either be replaced or credited after confirmation of deficiencies. PACKAGING, PACKING, AND LABELING: All packaging and packing shall be in accordance with good commercial practice. Labeling shall be in accordance with commercial labeling complying with the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act and regulations promulgated thereunder (21 USC 343). All items shall be identified with readable dates (open code dates), or coded dates. Contractors who do not use open dating will provide a product code number key listing to the facility. The product code number key listing shall explain the actual date of production or processing. Copies of key-codes will be furnished to the destination receiving officer and destination inspection agency with the first delivery. Failure to comply with this requirement will render a contract in default and ground of termination. Unless otherwise specified, preservation, packaging, and packing shall be to a degree of protection to preclude damage to containers and/or contents thereof under normal shipping conditions, handling, etc., and shall conform to normal commercial practices and applicable carrier rules and regulations involving shipment from the contractor to the receiving activity for storage. Shipping containers shall be in compliance with National Motor Freight Classification and Uniform Freight classification (issue in effect at time of shipment). SANITATION AND WORKMANSHIP: Items shall be prepared, processed, and packed under sanitary conditions and in accordance with good commercial practice. All containers shall be clean, sound, and securely covered or sealed to provide adequate protection from dirt or other contamination. COMPLIANCE WITH FEDERAL LAWS AND REGULATIONS: All deliveries shall conform in every respect to the provisions of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act and regulations promulgated thereunder. All items furnished under this contract shall be prepared, processed, and packed under sanitary conditions in accordance with good commercial practice and approved standards established by the Food and Drug Administration. All containers shall be clean, sound, and securely covered or sealed to provide adequate protection from dirt, filth, and all other contamination. Chilled and frozen items shall be maintained at temperatures necessary for the preservation of the product. INSPECTION OF PLANTS: An inspection may be made of the premises and employees of the offeror, prior to the award of contract, and conditions found will be considered in awarding the contract. An inspection may also be made at any time during the life of the contract and if it is found that the contractor does not comply with specifications, deliveries will be rejected and the product covered by this contractor will be procured in the open market. Additional costs incurred by this action will be charged against the contractor s account. The FHCC Contracting Officer or his/her designee reserves the right to inspect the Contractors premises at any time during the life of the contract. A pre-award, on-site visit to inspect the manufacturing plant, personnel, process and packaging equipment and premises to verify compliance with all applicable Federal and State mandatory requirements and regulations relating to the preparation, packaging, labeling, storage, distribution, and sales of the products with the commercial marketplace may be performed by the Government prior to the contract award. If the plant of the apparent lowest price offeror does not meet specifications or is not acceptable, the offer will be rejected. Certification of a passing safety inspection, within six (6) of this Request Proposals (RFP), is required to be submitted with the offer (21 USC 350d). REPORTS: Contractor shall provide a report summarizing the total amount by line item delivered, the unit cost of each line item, and the total dollars delivered each quarter. The report shall be provided electronically via email to the Contracting Officer and his/her Representative (COR) at the end of each quarter. If the Contractor utilizes the services of a sub-contractor(s) for deliveries, the Prime Contractor will be responsible for gathering the required information for submission to the Contracting Officer at this Captain James A. Lovell FHCC. SPECIFICATIONS AND STANDARDS: The delivered products shall comply with all applicable Federal, State and local mandatory requirements and regulations relating to the preparation, labeling, storage, distribution, and sales of the products in the commercial marketplace. All deliveries shall conform in every respect to the provisions of the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act and regulations promulgated thereunder. CONTRACTOR S CERTIFICATION: By submitting an offer, the contractor certifies that the product offered meets the specified salient characteristics and requirements described in this solicitation. The Government reserves the right to determine proof of such conformance prior to the first delivery from point of origin and any time thereafter, up to, and including delivery at final destination as may be necessary to determine conformance with the provisions of the contract. SOURCE OF MANUFACTURE: Items supplied under this contract are required to originate from a sanitarily approved source. The supplier must identify the source of manufacture on the primary container or in the accompanying shipping documents, consisting of either the manufacturing plant name and address, and a manufacturing plant code. When the manufacturing plant is identified on the shipping documents accompanying the delivery, the plant shall be identified by its complete name, address and plant code. All prices submitted shall be inclusive of delivery charges. Delivery charges shall not be separately priced. DELIVERY SCHEDULE: Point of Contact: Barbara Prochaska, phone +1 (555) 000-0000 Delivery Location: 3001 Green Bay Road, North Chicago, IL 60064 (Building 6, 2nd Floor) Delivery Hours: 6:30am 9:00am Delivery Frequency: Six (6) days per week (Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday) DELIVERY EXPECTATIONS: Daily deliveries will be at, or about the same time each day and within the established hours. If a delivery date falls on a Federal Holiday, the vendor must establish an alternate delivery date and inform the Federal health Care Center of the new date(s) at least seven days (7) prior to the Federal Holiday. Deliveries must be delivered in a refrigerated truck and delivered below 41 degrees Fahrenheit. The Federal Health Care Center has the right to refuse delivery if products are above 41 degrees Fahrenheit. All delivery tickets and invoices referencing the purchase order number must show the product purchased, package type, and cost. Vendors will acquire signatures from the Federal Health Care Center Storeroom Clerks/Material Handlers after the delivery products are inspected. A Food Service Worker Supervisor can sign invoices only on Saturday, Sunday, and Holidays in the absence of the above approved individuals. Failure to acquire an invoice signature could result in non-payment. Vendors cannot self-sign invoices; this can also result in non-payment. The Federal Health Care Center reserves the right to return products at point of delivery to vendor if damaged, does not meet quality standards, or overage in ordering at no cost to FHCC. Federal Health Care Center requests ability return products which degrades rapidly after delivery (72 hours maximum). If an item has been ordered and is not available at the time of delivery, it will be the vendor s responsibility to obtain the necessary product that day. DISASTERS/EMERGENCIES: The contractor must always have plans for delivery to the FHCC, inclusive to emergency deliveries, and disaster conditions. The FHCC may place a special order in preparation for, or in response to, a disaster or emergency situation. For anticipatory situations, such orders will be placed 24 hours or more in advance. In an emergency, the contractor will be notified with the amount and type of products required by the FHCC that shall be delivered within 24 hours of the order placement. The order may be placed in larger quantities than the normal weekly order. The contractor shall provide the Contracting Officer and both technical representatives with its designated point of contact and contact information for emergency orders. AUTHORIZATION FOR CHANGES: The contractor shall contact the Contracting Officer on all matters pertaining to administration. Only the Contracting Officer is authorized to make commitments to issue changes which will affect the price, quantity and quality or delivery of this contract. ORDERS: Authorized personnel from Nutrition and Food Service will place all delivery orders by phone, e-mail, fax, or online ordering system. FHCC will require deliveries six (6) days per week. Order will Not be required to be placed more than one week prior to delivery day. Order is based on facility needs and amounts will increase or decrease in conjunction with demand. The Government does not guarantee the estimated yearly quantity. Federal Health Care Center reserves the right to order precisely the amount of produce that is needed including packages of EACH, POUND, & HALF CASE. No standing orders or standard set quantity can be established by the vendor. FHCC requests the ability to submit orders electronically (via e-mail) directly to vendor in emergencies. PAYMENT METHOD: Government purchase card. FAILURE TO DELIVER: If the contractor fails to deliver the requested item(s) or acceptable substitute, or to deliver during the required time period, the Government may purchase the item(s) from other source(s). The contractor will be held liable for any additional costs associated with procuring item(s) for non-contract sources. Responses must include the following information: 1. To qualify as a small business seller your company must meet the requirements of 13 CFR 121.406 (b)(1)(i), (b)(1)(ii) and (b)(1)(iii). 2. Company name, address, point of contact and email address 3. Size status and representation/s of the company (i.e., Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB), Veteran Owned Small Business (VOSB), HUBZone, Woman Owned Small Business (WOSB), Large Business, etc.) 4. Is the company considered a small business under the NAICS code 311991? 5. If the company has a current federal contract, are the products being offered available on the contract? Questions should be sent to the Contracting Officer, Erica Grimslid at contact@example.gov. Responses to this sources sought must be received no later than September 19, 2025, at 9:00am CST. As a reminder, this is a Sources Sought announcement only. There is no guarantee, expressed or implicit, that the market research for this acquisition will result in a particular set-aside or sole source award, or any other guarantee of an award strategy. All information is to be provided on a voluntary basis at no charge to the Government. Interested vendors are reminded that in accordance with FAR 4.1102(a) Offerors and quoters are required to be registered in SAM at the time an offer or quotation is submitted to comply with the annual representations and certifications requirements. Registration is available at www.sam.gov. PRODUCE LIST: