UNSPSC 50402711: Ivory tower celery

The variety of celery known as ivory tower celery

UNSPSC 50402711 Ivory tower celery, a Commodity code, represents fresh produce sourcing for institutional food service — primarily school districts and government agencies procuring produce for child nutrition programs, inmate meals, and senior services. State and local governments buy under this code to supply fresh fruits and vegetables in bulk to school cafeterias, correctional facilities, and social services programs, with a heavy emphasis on produce meeting USDA nutrition standards, domestic sourcing preferences, and traceability requirements. The issuing-body mix skews heavily toward school districts (Madison Metropolitan School District, Northside Independent School District, Hillsborough County Public Schools, multiple Georgia county school systems, McAllen ISD, Austin ISD, Meriden Public Schools), with secondary solicitation activity from state departments (Texas Department of Criminal Justice, State of Georgia), county social services (San Antonio Senior Services), and child care agencies (Head Start of Greater Dallas). School nutrition programs dominate the activity; these districts typically solicit multiple times per fiscal year as they replace expiring contracts or open new procurement cycles for fall food-service startup.

Geographic concentration is heaviest in Georgia and Texas, with recent opportunities from Bartow County Schools, Dougherty County Board of Education, Bryan County Schools, Bulloch County School District, Liberty County Schools, Muscogee County Schools, Glynn County Schools, Savannah-Chatham County Public Schools, Bulloch County, and the State of Georgia itself. Texas activity includes TDCJ institutional produce procurement (carrots, sweet potatoes, white potatoes) and independent school districts (Northside ISD, McAllen ISD, Austin ISD). Secondary activity appears in Florida (Hillsborough County), Connecticut (Meriden Public Schools), Missouri (Rockwood R-VI School District), and scattered solicitations in other states. Representative recent opportunities include Northside Independent School District's RFP 2026-048 for fresh produce (sealed-bid, deadline May 7, 2026, five-day-per-week delivery to 117 campuses); Douglas County School System's RFP SN 26-004 through the GEC Buying Cooperative for produce and eggs serving 30 districts across Georgia (two geographic areas, estimated annual spend $5.5 million combined, deadline March 4, 2026); and McAllen Independent School District's RFP 2026-1029 for fresh produce to 31 campuses (deadline extended to March 6, 2026). Evaluation heavily weights cost (typically 30–50% of score), with secondary emphasis on product quality, delivery reliability, and compliance with Buy American requirements and food-safety certifications (HACCP plans, GAP certification, traceability documentation). Insurance requirements are standard ($500,000 to $2 million general liability) and contracts typically run July 1 through June 30 with one to four one-year renewal options.