Marianne J. Zadra

Marianne J. Zadra serves as a Purchasing Agent for the Custer Gallatin National Forest, a unit of the U.S. Forest Service within the Department of Agriculture. In this role, she manages the acquisition of goods and services essential to maintaining critical infrastructure across more than 3 million acres of federally protected land. Her responsibilities include soliciting, evaluating, and awarding contracts for forestry support, farm supplies, and animal production services—all vital to ecological stewardship, trail and road maintenance, and wildfire mitigation efforts. Zadra ensures procurement activities align with federal regulations and the agency’s mission to balance public access with environmental sustainability. She maintains strong, recurring relationships with key contractors including YOUNG GUN CONSTRUCTION LLC, TK3, LLC, and KOMMODITIES CORP, which consistently deliver specialized services ranging from trail construction and vegetation management to bulk agricultural supply distribution. These partnerships reflect a preference for vendors with proven expertise in remote-area logistics and federal land operations, fostering reliable, performance-based contracting arrangements grounded in compliance and operational readiness. Zadra demonstrates a robust commitment to socioeconomic contracting, with over two-thirds of her acquisitions set aside for small businesses under FAR 19.5, and nearly one-third reserved for service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses (SDVOSBs). Her procurement patterns reflect a deliberate effort to amplify small business participation, particularly among firms certified under federal socioeconomic programs, enhancing economic opportunity while ensuring access to niche capabilities critical to forest management. Her primary procurement focus lies in NAICS 424910 (Farm Supplies Merchant Wholesalers), 115310 (Support Activities for Forestry), and 115210 (Support Activities for Animal Production), reflecting deep specialization in supplying forestry equipment, wildlife management resources, and agricultural inputs necessary for land stewardship. Zadra’s expertise ensures timely, compliant delivery of mission-critical resources tailored to the unique challenges of managing vast, ecologically sensitive public lands.