UNSPSC 50301518: Delicious apples

The variety of apples known as delicious apples

UNSPSC 50301518 Delicious apples, a Commodity code, covers fresh whole apples procured by state and local educational and social-service agencies for child nutrition programs, senior services, and correctional facilities. State and local buyers under this code are predominantly school districts, child care food program operators, and county social-service and corrections agencies. Recent opportunities show school nutrition departments sourcing apples as standalone items or as part of broader fresh produce contracts tied to federal meal programs—the National School Lunch Program, School Breakfast Program, Child and Adult Care Food Program, and USDA Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program. Procurement is typically structured as sealed bids or requests for proposals, with awards often going to single or multiple vendors on a line-item basis. Issuing bodies include independent school districts of varying sizes (from rural single-digit-school systems to large urban districts serving 20,000+ students), county school boards, cooperative purchasing consortia spanning multiple districts, specialized child care operators, and county corrections departments. Georgia school districts and Texas independent school districts account for a substantial share of recent activity, though opportunities have appeared across Florida, Connecticut, Mississippi, Oregon, California, and other states.

Apples appear across nearly every fresh produce solicitation, with specification sheets naming multiple commercial varieties—Gala, Fuji, Granny Smith, Honeycrisp, Golden Delicious, Red Delicious, and jazz—with case quantities ranging from dozens to hundreds monthly depending on school population and program scope. Recent representative opportunities include Hancock County Board of Education (Sparta, Georgia) requesting fresh produce including multiple apple varieties for 2026-27 school year under IFB #SN002-2027, with bids due June 26, 2026; the GEC Buying Cooperative serving 30 Georgia school districts requesting approximately 70 fresh produce line items including apples under SN 26-004 with estimated Area One spending of $4.4 million annually, proposals due March 4, 2026; McAllen Independent School District (Texas) seeking fresh produce for its Child Nutrition Program under RFP 2026-1029 for 31 campuses serving 20,000 students, proposals due March 6, 2026; and Hillsborough County Public Schools (Tampa, Florida) soliciting specialty fresh fruits and vegetables for USDA Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program elementary delivery under RFP 26039RFPDST, estimated annual budget $600,000, proposals due March 11, 2026. Pricing structures vary—some districts use fixed unit pricing per case or per pound, others employ cost-plus-fixed-fee models indexed to USDA Agricultural Marketing Service terminal market reports. Buy American provisions requiring minimum domestic agricultural content (typically 51 percent for processed items) appear in federal-funding-tied solicitations. Delivery frequency is typically weekly Monday through Friday before noon, with temperature-controlled transport required. Payment terms run Net 30 to Net 45 days from invoice and acceptance. Minimum insurance requirements center on general liability of $500,000 to $2 million per occurrence and workers' compensation per state statute. Most contracts term for one year with optional renewal periods extending up to four or five years; prices remain firm for the initial contract period with escalation typically permitted only on six-month review cycles backed by verified market data.