The U.S. Department of Agriculture yesterday announced plans to purchase cheese for distribution to various food nutrition assistance programs. USDA will purchase process cheeses and shredded and chunk cheddar cheeses under the authority of Section 32, a permanent appropriation of the Act of August 24, 1935, that supports the farm sector through the purchase of commodities to encourage domestic consumption.

USDA said the formal solicitation will be announced “in the near future,” and IDFA will alert members as soon as we know the date.

Only USDA-approved vendors will be allowed to submit offers, which must be made via USDA’s Web-Based Supply Chain Management System (WBSCM). The following links may be helpful for members submitting bids.

According to USDA, applicable commodity specifications will be identified in subsequent solicitations.

How to Become an Approved Vendor 

Dairy processors that are not currently approved may contact USDA at NewVendor@ams.usda.gov to start the approval process, which can take several weeks. Dairy processors may also contact Taylor Boone, IDFA coordinator of regulatory affairs, at tboone@idfa.org for more information.

Reminder for Fluid Milk Solicitation

Last week, USDA issued the first of two bid solicitations for fluid milk as part of the previously announced $84.9 million purchase of fluid milk and other dairy products to protect agriculture markets from trade disruption.  The milk solicitation covers up to 5.49 million gallons of fluid milk products for delivery April through June 2019. The bid solicitation is for whole, 2% reduced-fat, 1% low-fat and fat-free milk in gallon containers.

The deadline to submit fluid milk bids is Friday, February 15, 2019, by 2 p.m. Eastern time. IDFA urges approved vendors to submit their bids as soon as possible, and USDA recommends submitting bids at least 24 hours before the deadline. As part of a change requested by the dairy industry, this new bid solicitation will include a monthly economic price adjustment (EPA) to accommodate monthly escalation and reduction of raw milk costs that more closely resemble those used in the commercial marketplace.

View the full text of the draft EPA clause and pricing example here.

The links below provide reference information for the milk solicitation that processors may want to consider before submitting bids. 

Stay Tuned
The second and final solicitation for USDA’s $84.9 million purchase of fluid milk under Section 5 will occur in April for delivery July through September 2019. We will let you know when that solicitation process opens and the submission deadline is announced.

Members with questions may contact Boone at tboone@idfa.org