Official USDA 840 LF RFID ID tags approved for cattle and bison

This solicitation, numbered 12639526R0001, is a combined synopsis and request for proposal for the supply of official USDA-approved, low-frequency radio identification (LF RFID) 840 button-style ear tags for cattle and bison, issued under FAR Part 12 as a commercial items acquisition. The contract is structured as a five-year Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) agreement with firm fixed-price delivery orders, with an estimated annual demand of 5 to 8 million tags across five ordering periods totaling an estimated 40 million units, though quantities are not guaranteed. Proposals must demonstrate technical acceptability through compliance with USDA/APHIS standards, including ISO-11784/ISO-11785 conformance, ICAR certification, proper 840 AIN encoding, USDA shield marking, and adherence to packaging and labeling specifications such as sequential AIN traceability, NSN Z888-00-HDX-RFID labeling, and Arial font requirements for PIN and tag identifiers. The evaluation process follows the Lowest Price, Technically Acceptable (LPTA) methodology, where only proposals that pass the binary technical acceptability criteria—covering approved tag compliance and a robust shipping and tracking management plan—are considered, with award going to the lowest-priced technically acceptable offeror. All offerors must be registered in SAM.gov with a Unique Entity ID, and large businesses are required to submit a Small Business Subcontracting Plan with specific goals for small, disadvantaged, women-owned, HUBZone, and service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses. The contract imposes strict security and compliance requirements on contractor personnel, including completion of USDA IT security training, E-Verify registration, and successful background investigations by the Office of Personnel Management for access to the AIMS system. Personnel must comply with PIV policies and Departmental Regulation DM 4620-002, with failure to maintain clearance potentially resulting in contract termination. Delivery is governed by F.O.B. Destination terms, with shipments to specified consignee locations such as USDA APHIS in Minneapolis, MN, and must include sterile packaging for injectable transponders and bold disclosure instructions for harvest. Invoices must be submitted through the Invoice Processing Platform (IPP), not WAWF, and compliance with federal contracting clauses including 52.203-6, 52.204-9, 52.232-