Christine Gouger

Christine Gouger serves as a key procurement professional within the Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) under the U.S. Department of Agriculture, overseeing the acquisition of processed agricultural commodities critical to federal nutrition assistance programs. Her work directly supports AMS’s mission to ensure the reliable delivery of safe, shelf-stable foods—including canned, frozen, and dried products—to vulnerable populations nationwide. She manages a diverse portfolio of contracts spanning manufacturing, warehousing, and quality assurance services, with a focus on end-to-end supply chain solutions that meet stringent federal food safety and storage standards. Her acquisitions are strategically aligned with national nutrition security goals and emphasize operational resilience and regulatory compliance. Gouger maintains a consistent working relationship with Navcor Logistics LLC, a primary contractor providing integrated logistics and distribution services for perishable and preserved food commodities. Her procurement pattern reflects a preference for established vendors with proven capacity in cold chain management, bulk storage, and just-in-time delivery systems. While she engages with a limited number of high-capacity partners, her contracting approach prioritizes reliability, scalability, and adherence to USDA food handling protocols, fostering long-term vendor collaboration grounded in performance metrics and compliance oversight. Gouger’s contracting activity is entirely non-set-aside, with 100% of awards issued under full and open competition. This reflects a strategic emphasis on maximizing operational efficiency and leveraging the broadest possible pool of qualified suppliers capable of meeting the scale and technical demands of federal food distribution. While small business participation is not formally prioritized through socioeconomic set-asides, her procurement decisions are driven by capability, capacity, and compliance rather than socioeconomic classifications. Her primary procurement focus lies in three NAICS categories: 311513 (Cheese Manufacturing), 493110 (General Warehousing and Storage), and 541380 (Testing Laboratories and Services). These reflect a technical domain expertise in dairy processing, temperature-controlled logistics, and third-party food safety testing. She ensures all contracted services meet USDA food quality standards, including pathogen screening, shelf-life validation, and packaging integrity assessments, making her a critical link between agricultural production and federal nutrition program delivery.