UNSPSC 50301641: Queen apricots

The variety of apricots known as queen apricots

UNSPSC 50301641 Queen apricots (Commodity) represents a narrow product line within state and local food procurement, but recent opportunities show the code attracting solicitations for much broader fresh produce categories where queen apricots appear as one item among dozens. State and local governments procuring under this code—primarily school districts, child care agencies, and county nutrition programs—are buying comprehensive fresh-produce supply contracts that embed individual commodity lines like apricots into larger meal-program frameworks. The issuing bodies span independent school districts (Madison Metropolitan School District in Wisconsin, Austin ISD in Texas, Hillsborough County Public Schools in Florida, McAllen ISD in Texas), county school systems (Bulloch County, Dougherty County, Bryan County, Glynn County, Liberty County, Hancock County in Georgia; DeSoto County in Mississippi; Henry County in Georgia), municipal purchasing offices (City of Bridgeport, Connecticut for the Board of Education; City of Meriden, Connecticut; City of Edinburg, Texas), school nutrition cooperatives (GEC Buying Cooperative serving 30 Georgia districts; Douglas County School System), and specialized child-care agencies (Head Start of Greater Dallas). The work solicited ranges from narrow single-item awards (Madison Metropolitan's RFB 4162 for petite bananas, July 29 response due) to expansive multi-category contracts spanning 60–1,100+ line items covering proteins, vegetables, fruits, dairy, and paper goods. Geographic concentration is heaviest in Georgia and Texas, with secondary activity in Wisconsin, Florida, Connecticut, Mississippi, and California, reflecting the footprint of large urban school districts and cooperative purchasing consortia.

Recent representative opportunities illustrate the scope: Madison Metropolitan School District issued RFB 4162 (due July 29, 2026) for petite bananas at an estimated $78,000 annual value and RFB 4163 (due July 29, 2026) for fresh fruit and vegetable snacks sourced within 400 miles of Madison; Bulloch County Schools released RFP PE55612NONST2027000000031 (due May 4, 2026) seeking fresh locally grown produce including apricots and other items within 200 miles; and the GEC Buying Cooperative (Douglas County School System lead) issued RFP SN 26-004 (due March 4, 2026) covering 72 produce line items for 30 Georgia districts at estimated $5.5 million annual spending. City of Bridgeport issued IFB BNB052266 (due June 30, 2026) for over 1,100 grocery line items including fresh fruits under Buy American and nutritional standards. Evaluation criteria across these procurements consistently weight cost at 30–50 percent, with significant points allocated to vendor experience, delivery reliability, product quality, and compliance (HACCP plans, traceability, food safety certifications, insurance). Pricing structures vary from firm fixed-price to cost-plus-fixed-fee models indexed to USDA agricultural commodity indices. No set-asides for disadvantaged vendors appear standard across the code; local-vendor preferences and geographic sourcing preferences (within-state, within-region) are common. Incumbent vendor information is rarely disclosed, suggesting these are open competitive procurements. Most contracts run July 1 through June 30 with renewal options. The activity level is robust and sustained across institutional food service procurement, making this code worth monitoring for firms positioned to supply fresh produce at scale to school nutrition programs and child care agencies.