Nutrition Programs

This page is designed to provide school food authorities (SFAs) with information regarding the proper procedures to be used in the procurement of contracts for foods and goods (not meal services contracts) in the School-Based Child Nutrition Programs. Numerous references and resources are also provided.

Applicability of Federal Requirements to School Food Service Procurements

In August 2000, a final regulation published in the Federal Register moved the procurement procedure requirements for the Child Nutrition Programs from Department regulation 7 CFR Part 3015 to 7 CFR Parts 3016 and 3019. School food authorities are encouraged to share this information with their legal counsel. Please refer to the questions and answers link below for more information regarding how these requirements have changed the procurement procedures for public and nonprofit school food authorities.

Procurement Procedures Questions and Answers

The Code of Federal Regulations (CFR)

7 CFR Part 3016 Uniform Administrative Requirements for Grants and Cooperative Agreements to State and Local Governments
7 CFR Part 3017 Governmentwide Debarment and Suspension (Nonprocurement) and Governmentwide Requirements for Drug-Free Workplace (Grants)
7 CFR Part 3018 New Restrictions on Lobbying
7 CFR Part 3019 Uniform Administrative Requirements for Grants and Agreements with Institutions of Higher Education, Hospitals, and Other Non-Profit Organizations

For further information, refer to the questions and answers above.

Competitive Sealed Bid Requirements

Purchases or contracts in excess of $100,000 on an annual basis must be competitively bid. To determine if you exceed this threshold, examine the manner in which food and supplies are purchased.

When using vendors that can supply only one particular type of product such as bread, milk, or meat, the competitive bid process must be implemented when the amount of purchases exceeds $100,000 per type of product.
When one or more full-line vendors supply various items such as canned, frozen, and dry goods, the total annual purchase amount for all vendors must be added together. If the amount exceeds $100,000, the food must be competitively bid.
If purchases for branded products (Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, etc.) exceed $100,000 annually, the products must be competitively bid.

Competitive Sealed Bid Procedures

The following procurement procedures must be implemented to ensure compliance with federal and state regulations and statutes. The SFA should also seek the advice of their legal counsel regarding local regulations and policies.

The invitation for bid, including the specifications and attachments, must define the items or services needed in order for the bidders to properly respond.
Bids must be solicited from an adequate number of known suppliers.
The procurement must be publicly advertised in at least one public notice at least ten (10) days before the bid open date in a newspaper of general circulation.
Sealed bids are accepted.
Bids are opened at a public bid opening and the bid contents are announced.
The contract is awarded to the responsible and responsive bidder whose bid, conforming to all the material terms, specifications, and conditions of the invitation for bid, is lowest in price.
Documentation of the entire process is maintained.

Informal Bid Procedures

If the purchases do not exceed $100,000 as described above, informal bid procedures may be used. The following steps should be part of the informal bid process:

Develop a written purchase description of the services/items being solicited;
Solicit quotes/bids from three or more potential vendors based on the purchase description; document vendor names along with the date and method of contact—be sure to maintain free and open competition;
Record all quotes/bids received and any notification received from vendors declining to bid;
Evaluate the quotes for conformance to the purchase description;
Award the purchase/contract (record the justification for the award); and
Maintain all documents on file for potential audit purposes.

Bid Document Development

Federal regulations (7 CFR Part 3016.36(b)) prohibit the awarding of contracts to any person or entity that develops or drafts specifications, requirements, statements of work, invitations for bids, requests for proposals, contract terms and conditions or other procurement documents. In failing to fulfill its responsibilities to draft its own specifications and procurement documents, a school food authority (SFA) which copies a list of features or evaluation and ranking criteria drafted by a potential vendor and then permits that potential vendor to submit a bid has violated federal regulation 7 CFR Part 3016.60(b). This pertains to all child nutrition program procurements, including software acquisitions. While schools have broad discretion in gathering information for use in connection with procurements, information from potential bidders must be appropriately modified to develop tailored specifications; otherwise these bidders must be excluded from competing for such procurements. This is to ensure objective contractor performance and eliminate unfair competitive advantage.

Geographic Preferences

Federal regulations require procurements to be conducted in a manner that allows for free and open competition. Therefore, a school food authority (SFA) cannot impose geographic restrictions on potential bidders, with one exception. Geographic preference may only be applied to the procurement of unprocessed agricultural products which are locally grown and locally raised, and that have not been cooked, seasoned, frozen, canned, or combined with any other products. De minimis handling and preparation are allowable in order to present an agricultural product to an SFA in a useable form, such as washing vegetables, bagging greens, butchering livestock and poultry, pasteurizing milk, and putting eggs in a carton.

While a geographic preference may be used to encourage the purchase of locally grown and locally raised products by enabling SFAs to grant an advantage to local growers, this provision does not eliminate the requirement for procurements to be conducted in a manner that allows for free and open competition as noted previously. In addition, while SFAs are permitted to apply a geographic preference for the procurement of locally grown and locally raised unprocessed agricultural products, SFAs are not required to do so. The SFA has the discretion to determine whether and how a geographic preference meets its needs.

Buy American

School food authorities are required to adhere to the Buy American provisions found in federal regulations (7 CFR Part 250.23). Actions an SFA should take to comply with these requirements are as follows:

Include a Buy American clause in all procurement documents (product specifications, bid solicitation, purchase orders, etc.);
Monitor contractor performance;
Require suppliers to certify the origin of the product;
Examine product packaging for identification of the country of origin; and
Ask the supplier for specific information about the percentage of U.S. content in the food product.

For further information, view questions and answers.

Contract Certification Forms

Bid-Rigging Certification
Certification Regarding Debarment, Suspension, Ineligibility, and Voluntary Exclusion—Lower Tier Covered Transactions (if contract is $25,000 or more)
Certification Regarding Lobbying—Contracts, Grants, Loans and Cooperative Agreement (if contract is over $100,000)
Disclosure of Lobbying Activities (if contract is over $100,000 and if applicable)

Bid Protests

Any action which diminishes open and free competition seriously undermines the integrity of the procurement process and may subject an SFA to bid protests. SFAs are responsible for properly responding to protests and concerns raised by potential contractors. Pursuant to §3016.36(b) (12), SFAs must have protest procedures in place to handle and resolve disputes relating to their procurements and must in all instances disclose information regarding a protest to the Illinois State Board of Education Nutrition Programs Division.

References and Resources

USDA Policy Memo (SP 02-2010) Procurement Questions - October 9, 2009
Choice Plus: A Reference Guide for Foods and Ingredients
USDA Team Nutrition reference guide on foods and ingredients to assist purchasers in developing food specifications consistent with nutritional goals and knowledge. Provides information to help program operators make informed decisions when purchasing products for use in school lunch and breakfast programs. (Published 1996, National Food Service Management Institute)
Choice Plus Food Safety Supplement
Provides information on how to apply food safety to the food purchasing process. Discusses onsite visits to distributors, food recalls, safety language, food dating, manufacturer HACCP qualification standards, manufacturer audit survey, and estimated storage life of products. (Published 2003, National Food Service Management Institute)
Cooperative Purchasing for Child Nutrition Programs
105-minute satellite teleconference video addresses cooperative purchasing. Includes forming a cooperative purchasing system, managing purchasing cooperatives, and maintaining communications. (Published 1999, National Food Service Management Institute)
Equipping School Kitchens to Prepare Healthful Meals
Examines production equipment issues and provides equipment guidelines for the type and amount of food preparation necessary for producing menus planned in accordance with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. (Published 1996, National Food Service Management Institute)
Excluded Parties List System
Use this site to search for parties or companies that are debarred or suspended from conducting business.
First Choice: A Purchasing Systems Manual for School Food Service, 2nd Edition
A resource to guide child nutrition professionals in their procurement procedures. This edition provides procurement information and integrates food safety information to assist the purchaser in establishing procedures to assure the receipt of a safe product as specified. (Revised 2002, National Food Service Management Institute)
Food Buying Guide For Child Nutrition Programs
This is a link to the USDA website where the document can be downloaded. The handbook provides information to help serve meals that meet USDA requirements for any of the Child Nutrition Programs and assist food service personnel and purchasing agents in the purchase of the proper amount of food. (Published March 2002, U.S. Department of Agriculture Food and Nutrition Service)
A Guide for Purchasing Foodservice Equipment
Presents a decision-making process and critical pathway approach to purchasing conventional foodservice production equipment. Addresses issues related to new construction, renovation, and replacements. (Published 1998, National Food Service Management Institute)
Procurement Education and Training
90-minute satellite teleconference video provides basic information about the purchasing process and the importance of training. A key message is the importance of administrative decision-making based on assessment of individual program and training needs. Expert panelists identified the steps of the procurement process for Child Nutrition Programs, described successful methods used in procurement training, compared similarities and differences of training needs, and more. (Published 2004, National Food Service Management Institute)
Purchasing Decisions for Cost Effective Implementation of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans
Addresses how achievement of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans places special considerations on the purchasing process. Resources developed to help you become a more skillful purchaser also are mentioned. (Published 1995, National Food Service Management Institute)