UNSPSC 50552524: Canned or jarred non GMO sweetheart cherries

The variety of non GMO cherries known as non GMO sweetheart cherries that have been canned or jarred for preservation. This means that they are produced without the use of methods that genetically modify organisms by means that are not possible under natural conditions. Such methods include cell fusion, microencapsulation and macro-encapsulation, and recombinant DNA technology (including gene deletion, gene doubling, introducing a foreign gene, and changing the positions of genes when achieved by recombinant DNA technology).

Traditional methods of breeding, conjugation, fermentation, hybridization, in vitro fertilization, or tissue culture are considered to be non-GMO.

UNSPSC 50552524 Canned or jarred non-GMO sweetheart cherries is a Commodity code under which state and local governments procure shelf-stable canned and jarred fruit products for institutional food service—primarily correctional facilities, state hospitals, supported living centers, senior services, school districts, and education-affiliated food service operations. The code captures both single-item fruit purchases and multi-line commodity procurements where canned cherries appear as one line item among dozens of shelf-stable foods. Recent solicitations show purchasing departments acquiring canned applesauce, dried fruit bars, mixed canned vegetables and fruits, and other preserved produce alongside or in place of the nominal sweetheart-cherry specification, indicating that issuing bodies often use this commodity tier flexibly to buy whatever preserved fruit meets their inventory needs and budget constraints in a given fiscal period. Issuing bodies are a mix of state departments (Oregon Department of Corrections, State of Illinois Chief Procurement Office, Texas Health and Human Services Commission, State of Georgia), county governments (Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners in Georgia, Hancock County Board of Education in Georgia), city purchasing offices (City of Bridgeport, Connecticut), independent school districts (Austin ISD, Bridgeport Board of Education), and state criminal-justice agencies (Texas Department of Criminal Justice). The Texas HHSC, Oregon DOC, and Illinois state procurement office appear repeatedly in the recent-opportunities block as repeat buyers of canned and preserved fruit and vegetable products across multiple quarterly and annual solicitation cycles.

Geographic activity concentrates in Texas, Georgia, Oregon, Illinois, and Connecticut, with the most recent opportunities appearing in Texas, Georgia (both state and local), Oregon, Illinois, and Connecticut between May and October 2026. Representative recent solicitations include the Oregon Department of Corrections' ITB for approximately 1,904 cases of canned fruit applesauce (S2910000016975, due June 2, 2026), the Texas Health and Human Services Commission's IFB for supplemental food and consumables including fresh, frozen, and canned fruit for state hospitals and supported living centers statewide (HHS0016792V2, due March 19, 2026, with a potential value of $4.5 million over three years), Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners' informal written quote for approximately 1,062 cases of shelf-stable food items including canned vegetables and proteins (PE77023NONST2027000000782, due October 19, 2026), and the State of Illinois Chief Procurement Office's weekly food order for the Illinois Veterans Home at Quincy under brand-specific and brand-or-equal specifications (27497DVAQUINCB53751 and 27497DVAQUINCB53752, due August 24, 2026). Award criteria typically emphasize responsive and responsible bidding, lowest unit-of-measure pricing, delivery compliance, and vendor past performance; Buy American provisions requiring minimum 51 percent domestic content apply in school nutrition and federal-program contexts.