RFP # I00126 - Virginia Grown Farm-to-School Products Distribution Services

The Blue Ridge Buying Group, with Staunton City Schools serving as the lead agency, is soliciting proposals under RFP I00126 for the supply and distribution of Virginia-grown agricultural products to eight participating school divisions. The scope of work includes providing fruits, vegetables, proteins, grains, and dairy, with a specific focus on supporting coordinated regional menu events that can require volumes for approximately 20,000 meals. Qualified offerors may include farms, producer cooperatives, food hubs, aggregators, processors, and distributors. The contract is structured as an indefinite-quantity requirements-type agreement on a unit price basis, featuring an initial one-year term with four optional one-year renewals, for a total potential duration of five years. Key operational requirements include maintaining a robust cold-chain capability for delivery to individual school kitchens or centralized warehouses and implementing a traceability system to verify the origin of all products. Offerors are encouraged to provide value-added processing services such as washing, dicing, and portion-packing to reduce labor in school kitchens. Compliance with the Buy American Requirement, USDA Policy Memo SP 33-2012, and Virginia food safety regulations is mandatory. Award decisions will be based on a 100-point scale evaluating technical capacity, food safety, and educational engagement. Selected contractors must maintain significant insurance coverage, including 2 million dollars in general liability and 1 million dollars each for automobile and workers compensation. Proposals are due by September 21, 2026, and must be submitted via the eVA system.