UNSPSC 50401601: Connover's colossal asparagus

The variety of asparagus known as connover's colossal asparagus

UNSPSC 50401601 Connover's colossal asparagus, a Commodity code, does not reflect the actual scope of state and local procurement activity currently being solicited under this designation. The recent opportunities tagged with this code are overwhelmingly for fresh produce procurement across multiple categories—apples, bananas, carrots, broccoli, lettuce, potatoes, tomatoes, strawberries, and dozens of other fruits and vegetables—rather than asparagus specifically. State and local buyers using this code are school districts, state departments, county boards of education, and child nutrition programs purchasing fresh produce for institutional meal service. The work being solicited includes sourcing, packaging, and delivery of fresh produce in weekly or regular cycles to school cafeterias, senior centers, correctional facilities, and Head Start programs; compliance with USDA Buy American provisions and food safety standards such as HACCP certification; traceability documentation; temperature-controlled delivery; and often pricing tied to USDA market index reports or cost-plus structures. Issuing bodies span school districts of varying sizes, state departments of criminal justice, county school nutrition programs, city senior services divisions, and Head Start agencies across multiple states.

The geographic concentration of recent activity is pronounced in Georgia and Texas, with notable recent opportunities from Bartow County Schools, Dougherty County Board of Education, Glynn County Board of Education, Bryan County Schools, Liberty County Board of Education, Bulloch County Schools, and Muscogee County Schools in Georgia; the Texas Department of Criminal Justice; and McAllen and Northside Independent School Districts in Texas. Other activity includes Hillsborough County Public Schools in Florida, Savannah-Chatham County Public School System in Georgia, Rockwood School District in Missouri, Henry County Schools in Georgia, and Austin Independent School District in Texas. Representative opportunities include Bartow County Schools RFP 10-2026-019 for local fresh fruits and vegetables with a June 22, 2026 proposal deadline seeking produce from within 400 miles with 30 points weighted to cost; Douglas County School System RFP SN 26-004 through GEC Buying Cooperative soliciting fresh produce and eggs for 30 school districts across two Georgia regions by March 4, 2026; Northside Independent School District RFP 2026-048 for fresh produce delivery five days weekly to 117 San Antonio-area campuses with proposals due May 7, 2026; and Texas Department of Criminal Justice bulk commodity procurements for carrots, white potatoes, and sweet potatoes for canning and institutional food service. Contract values where disclosed range from approximately $600,000 (Hillsborough County FFVP) to $4.4 million (Douglas County GEC Area One), with terms typically running twelve months with renewal options.