UNSPSC 50404809: Lobster mushrooms

The variety of mushrooms known as lobster mushrooms

UNSPSC 50404809 Lobster mushrooms is a Commodity code that state and local governments procure as part of broader fresh produce and food service supply contracts. Recent solicitations show this code captures fresh produce line items—including mushrooms alongside other vegetables, fruits, and specialty items—purchased by institutional food service operations (correctional facilities, mental health centers, schools, senior centers) and retail food programs. The code appears in composite food procurement RFPs where mushrooms are specified as one of dozens of produce items rather than as standalone mushroom-only bids, reflecting how state and local procurement typically bundles fresh produce into larger food service contracts. Institutional buyers—Texas Department of Criminal Justice food warehouses, state health and human services living centers, Illinois Department of Corrections facilities, school districts, and county parks departments—drive the majority of visible activity. The issuing bodies span state departments, county school systems, and municipal recreation departments, with no single buyer dominating; rather, procurement is distributed across dozens of mid-size jurisdictions purchasing food service supplies on an annual or multi-year basis.

Recent opportunities surface primarily in Texas, Georgia, and Illinois, reflecting the geographic concentration of recent postings. Representative current solicitations include the Texas Health and Human Services Commission's IFB HHS0018082 for consumable foods at the Lufkin State Supported Living Center (due October 23, 2026), which itemizes prepared foods and food service supplies but does not isolate mushrooms as a line item; the Texas Department of Criminal Justice's multiple fresh fruit and vegetable solicitations to Snyder and Wynne food warehouses (both due October 14, 2026) for delivery across the state prison system; the Illinois Department of Corrections' RFQ for fresh produce at Joliet Treatment Center (due September 3, 2026, small-business set-aside) specifying bi-weekly deliveries of cucumber, cabbage, lettuce, and other produce; and the Bartow County School System's RFP for local fresh fruits and vegetables (due June 22, 2026) requiring sourcing within 400 miles. No recent solicitation isolates lobster mushrooms as a standalone commodity; the code appears subsumed within larger fresh-produce family contracts where mushrooms, if specified, are listed alongside apples, carrots, peppers, onions, and seasonal vegetables at modest volumes—typically fewer than five cases annually per institutional buyer.