PROFILE OF AMERICAN CONSUMPTION AND DIET QUALITY

PROFILE OF AMERICAN CONSUMPTION AND DIET QUALITY THIS IS A SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE ONLY. THIS IS NOT A REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS. A SOLICITATION IS NOT AVAILABLE AT THIS TIME. The U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) intends to issue a procurement for a research study in Fiscal Year 2012 and is seeking statements of capability from potential offerors. Preference will be given to small businesses with experience and staffing to perform the requirement as demonstrated in the capability statement. The purpose of the study is to provide a comprehensive picture of the nutrient intakes, diet quality, and food choices of nutrition assistance program participants, eligible nonparticipants, and higher income nonparticipants. The nutrition assistance programs of interest include the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), and the National School Lunch Program (NSLP). This study will use the latest data available from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). The proposed study will update previous work, which used data collected from 1999 through 2004. The study objectives are as follows: 1. Analyze the nutrient intakes and food choices of participants of the SNAP, NSLP, and WIC programs compare to low-income and higher-income nonparticipants. - How do the food choices of all three groups compare? - Are there differences in the comparisons among major populations such as children, working-aged adults, and elderly, or between the genders? 2. Analyze the relationship between food choices of low-income individuals, participation in one or more nutrition assistance programs, and obesity. 3. Assess the impact of program participation on nutrient intake and diet quality, if feasible. 4. Analyze and compare food choice and nutrient intake of participants of multiple nutrition assistance programs with nonparticipants or participants of only one program, if feasible. - Is there an additional effect associated with participating in more than one nutrition assistance program versus participating in only one program? NHANES is a population-based survey conducted by the National Center for Health Statistics that is designed to collect information on the health and nutrition of the U.S. population. About 5,000 persons participate in this survey each year. There are two parts to this survey: 1) The home interview, and 2) The health examination. ? The home interview collects data on food security, demographics, income, housing characteristics, and program participation. The health examination is performed in a mobile examination center. A number of tests are performed, depending on the respondents' age and gender. The examination includes information on blood pressure, body fat, height and weight, physical activity, health status, diabetes, and a dietary recall interview. The dietary recall interview collects data on foods and beverages consumed during the preceding 24 hours. Data are released in two-year survey intervals. The most current data available are from 2009-2010. Data from 2005-2006 and 2007-2008 are also available. FNS anticipates that the study will largely rely on data from the dietary recall interview, supplemented with data collected through the household interview, examination survey, and physical examination. This will include data on household income, individual age and sex, program participation, and height and weight. CAPABILITY STATEMENT INFORMATION Please address your knowledge and experience within the last three (3) years and how you will provide each of the following points (A) through (G). Reference specific examples of how your firm has addressed the points listed below. Demonstrate your ability and experience with: (A) Conducting descriptive and multivariate analyses on the NHANES data, or similar nutritional datasets. (B) Assessing nutrient intake and dietary quality. (C) Writing technical reports. (D) Writing reports of technical information put into language appropriate to non-technical audiences. (E) Providing briefings of technical data appropriate for non-technical audiences. (F) Writing policy briefs appropriate for the USDA website and public communication. (G) Managing projects of a similar size and scope, including meeting government objectives, ensuring the quality and timeliness of deliverables, and coordinating with the government funding agency. Interested parties may submit capability statements that demonstrate its ability to perform all elements of the requirement as described in this notice. Your response must include a description of your past experience in the past three years on at least three (3) similar projects consistent in scope, size and complexity with this requirement; and a description of staff experience and skills. All responses must be submitted to christina.carter-kurant@fns.usda.gov NO LATER THAN 4:00 p.m. on Monday, March 26, 2012. Information received will be considered solely for the purpose of determining whether to conduct a competitive procurement. The Government is under no obligation to pursue further action on this request. For questions concerning this notice, please contact Christina Carter-Kurant, Contract Specialist, at 703-305-2265. Please limit the length of the packages to 20 pages. Packages over 20 pages will not be assessed.