NIGP 16582: Soup Kitchens, Cafeteria

NIGP 16582 Soup Kitchens, Cafeteria (Item) encompasses the procurement of food service supplies, small kitchen equipment, large food equipment, and cafeteria operations services that school districts, county facilities, and municipal governments buy to support meal programs and employee dining. State and local buyers under this code are primarily school nutrition programs—including Dougherty County Board of Education, Fulton County Schools, Henry County Schools, and Temple Independent School District in Georgia and Texas—alongside county courthouse operations, as illustrated by Collin County's cafeteria-services solicitation. The work ranges from consumable disposables (food trays, containers, cutlery, napkins, cleaning supplies) and small equipment (baking pans, mixing bowls, serving utensils, thermometers) to large refrigeration and food-prep units (walk-in coolers, convection ovens, serving lines) and turnkey cafeteria management contracts. School nutrition programs dominate the code's activity, with districts consistently issuing IFBs for supplies, small equipment, and large equipment to support the National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program across multiple school locations.

Recent opportunities cluster in Georgia and Texas. Dougherty County Board of Education posted three separate IFBs in 2026 (cafeteria supplies due May 12; small equipment due May 28) with responses required in the range of 30–60 days post-opening; Fulton County Schools solicited large food equipment (due April 28, 2026); Henry County Schools issued duplicate IFBs for food items and products (due May 4, 2026) requiring weekly delivery to 52 locations, cold-storage capability, and USDA commodity management integration; and Temple Independent School District issued an RFP for high-school cafeteria equipment including walk-in coolers and serving lines (proposals due March 25, 2026, with October 2026 delivery). Collin County (Texas) solicited full cafeteria operations and management at its courthouse (proposals due March 5, 2026, non-mandatory pre-proposal meeting February 18, 2026). Most school nutrition procurements require Buy American compliance, USDA debarment certifications, and compliance with civil rights and child nutrition regulations; insurance requirements typically include $1 million to $2 million in general liability coverage. No set-asides for disadvantaged enterprises appear in the recent solicitations, though TISD affirmatively encourages MBE, WBE, and HUB participation and subcontracting.