UNSPSC 50406417: Red jersey sweet potatoes

The variety of sweet potatoes known as red jersey sweet potatoes

UNSPSC 50406417 Red jersey sweet potatoes is a Commodity code. State and local governments procuring under this code buy fresh sweet potatoes, typically in bulk quantities for institutional food service — school nutrition programs, corrections departments, child care providers, and senior services. Recent solicitations show sweet potatoes sourced as whole produce for canning or processing, pre-cut and pre-packaged for direct student consumption, and incorporated into comprehensive fresh-produce contracts serving multiple institutional sites. The issuing bodies are predominantly school districts (elementary through high schools), followed by state departments (Texas Department of Criminal Justice), county boards of education, and specialized nutrition programs (Head Start, senior center services). School districts dominate the procurement mix, reflecting the weight of National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program funding. A handful of repeat buyers appear across multiple recent solicitations, including Bulloch County Board of Education in Georgia and various Texas school districts.

Sweet potato procurement activity concentrates heavily in Georgia and Texas, with secondary activity in Florida, Missouri, and Connecticut. The Texas Department of Criminal Justice has issued at least two sweet-potato-specific IFBs since March 2026 (IW253121 and IW242176), both with June 23, 2026 deadlines and electronic submission through the TDCJ Procurement Portal. Bulloch County Schools in Georgia solicited locally grown sweet potatoes (within 200 miles) through an IFP due May 4, 2026, as part of a farm-to-school initiative spanning 24 produce items; pricing ranged from historical examples at $2.00 per pound. Hillsborough County Public Schools in Tampa, Florida bid fresh, specialty produce including sweet potatoes for the USDA Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program to 18 elementary schools, with proposals due March 11, 2026, under a cost-plus fixed-fee-per-case model and an estimated annual budget of $600,000. School districts typically require GAP certification, HACCP plan compliance, traceability documentation by farm of origin, minimum shelf-life guarantees (frequently seven to ten days), and compliance with Buy American provisions. Delivery windows cluster at early morning hours (5:30–6:30 a.m.) to mid-afternoon (1:30–2:30 p.m.), Monday through Friday, with weekly or multiple-times-weekly frequency. Geographic sourcing preferences appear in Georgia (400-mile and 200-mile local-sourcing requirements in recent RFPs) and Texas (in-state preference under service-disabled veteran and Texas-resident provisions). Contract terms typically run July 1 through June 30 of the following year, with one to four optional annual renewal periods.