NIGP 91852: Food Service Consulting

NIGP 91852 Food Service Consulting, an Item code, encompasses advisory and planning services that state and local governments buy to evaluate, design, and transition food service operations — from RFPs for new vendors and operational assessments to menu planning support and facility transition management. Recent solicitations show consultants advising school districts on nutrition software selection, helping counties and convention centers structure food service procurements, and supporting higher-education institutions in transitioning food and beverage providers. The code attracts state procurement offices, county governments, school districts, universities, convention authorities, and transit agencies; repeat issuing bodies include state departments of education and public safety, county boards of commissioners, and community college systems. Representative recent opportunities include Dane County, Wisconsin, issuing an RFP for a consultant to evaluate current food and beverage operations at the Alliant Energy Center, draft and release an FSMC RFP, evaluate responses, and manage vendor transition (due June 4, 2026); DeKalb County School District, Georgia, posting an RFP for school nutrition services software selection consultation (due May 21, 2026); and Albany State University, on behalf of the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia, requesting quotes for campus operations consulting including dining services strategy (due August 7, 2026).

Consulting services under this code see activity concentrated in the Southeast and Midwest, with notable recent postings from Georgia (DeKalb County schools, SUNY-affiliated institutions), Wisconsin, Colorado, Florida, and Texas. Work spans pre-procurement planning, facility assessments, software and vendor evaluation support, financial modeling and viability analysis, and transition planning for incumbent-to-new-vendor handoffs. Scope typically requires consultants to hold experience in institutional food service operations, school nutrition programs, or higher-education dining management, with references demonstrating similar work. Most recent solicitations are issued as RFPs or eRFQs with response windows of 30–60 days; fees are structured as firm fixed-price, hourly rates, or phased fee arrangements tied to deliverables (pre-RFP planning, evaluation and recommendation, term-sheet negotiation). No set-asides or disadvantaged-enterprise restrictions appear common in the recent block. Dollar values are rarely disclosed in advance; compensation is negotiated post-award or evaluated cost-competitively against technical qualifications.