Agricultural Marketing Service

The Department of Agriculture Agricultural Marketing Service, a sub-agency of USDA responsible for procuring and distributing agricultural commodities to federal food assistance programs and conducting standards, marketing, and testing activities, awarded 41,497 federal contracts and 12,389 grants cumulatively since 1980 and 2000 respectively, with recent contract activity declining sharply and grant activity following a steeper pullback.

Contract activity has contracted significantly. AMS issued 1,617 awards in 2023, 1,743 in 2024, 1,193 in 2025, 852 in 2026, and 43 year-to-date in 2027. Combined contract potential value stands at $27.69 billion with $36.39 billion obligated across 2,959 distinct prime contractors. Competitive concentration is fragmented by award count but highly concentrated by dollar value over the last five years. Transnow Inc. leads by award count with 988 awards and $5 million combined potential value, followed by Aqua Gulf Transport, Inc. (405 awards, $1.8 million) and Inn Foods, Inc. (269 awards, $290.2 million). By potential value, the top five primes—Stutz Packing Company ($392.5 million on 72 awards), Inn Foods, Inc., Pacific Coast Producers ($283.4 million on 66 awards), Wescott Agri Products, Inc. ($267 million on 64 awards), and Burnette Foods, Inc. ($100.7 million on 77 awards)—hold only 5 percent of combined recent potential value, reflecting the portfolio's structure: many awards transact through Schedule task orders and BPA calls with potential value not reported in source data. Set-asides remain minimal; 84 percent of awards carry no set-aside, while 8 percent are small-business set-asides overall, with 3 percent as 8(a) sole source, 1 percent SDVOSB, and negligible shares across competitive 8(a), HUBZone, WOSB, and Buy Indian designations.

Grant activity shows stronger recipient concentration but lower recent volume. AMS distributed $5.06 billion in federal dollars across 8,079 distinct recipients, with 6,788 awards in 2022, 476 in 2023, 424 in 2024, 293 in 2025, and 107 in 2026. Top recipients by award count—Maryland Department of Agriculture (25 awards, $16.5 million federal), Texas Department of Agriculture (25 awards, $35.1 million), California Department of Food & Agriculture (22 awards, $127.5 million), Vermont Agency of Agriculture (20 awards, $53.8 million), and Alabama Department of Agriculture & Industries (18 awards, $13.6 million)—hold only 1 percent of recent awards, while California, Dairy Farmers of America Inc. ($103.5 million on 13 awards), NY State Agriculture & Markets, Vermont, and Washington's agriculture department hold 8 percent of recent federal dollars obligated. Recipients are highly fragmented by count but moderately concentrated by dollar volume. Assistance types are predominantly Project Grants (74 percent of awards) with Cooperative Agreements (16 percent), Block Grants (9 percent), and Formula Grants (1 percent).

Recent contract solicitations reflect AMS's core procurement mission: Solicitation 12-3J14-27-B-0014 for Frozen Beef Coarse Ground Products for Domestic Food Assistance Programs (due October 30, 2026, partial small-business set-aside), Solicitation 12-1NMG-27-B-0001 for Bulk Hard Red Winter Wheat and Sorghum for International Food Assistance Programs (due October 28, 2026, no set-aside), and Solicitation 12-1NTS-26-R-0002 for AMS Designated Laboratory Meat Testing Services (due November 20, 2026, IDIQ, no set-aside). The laboratory testing solicitation represents a shift from commodity procurement to testing infrastructure. Additional live solicitations cover frozen fruit, canned fruit, frozen vegetables, and poultry products, with several carrying amendments extending bid deadlines or adding line items. Most solicitations are invitations for bid (IFB) under commercial purchasing authority.

Recent grant opportunities target agricultural producers and organizations: the Dairy Business Innovation Initiatives Program FY 2026 (due December 1, 2026, approximately $12.65 million available for four existing initiatives), the Cold Chain Grants for Emergency Food Assistance (due October 1, 2026, 501(c)(3) nonprofits eligible), and the Sheep Production and Marketing Grant Program FY 2026 (due October 2, 2026, domestic entities and tribal governments eligible). The steep decline in both contract awards and grant distribution between 2023–2026 and the near-halt in 2027 activity recorded to date warrants clarification on whether portfolio data lags current operations or reflects agency workflow changes.

The Agricultural Marketing Service supports the fair marketing of U.S. agricultural products.