25_27 RFP Home Delivered Meals for the Senior.pdf

RFP No. 25-27

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ROCKDALE COUNTY FINANCE DEPARTMENT

PROCUREMENT OFFICE

958 Milstead Avenue

CONYERS, GA 30012

770-278-7552

INTRODUCTION:

Rockdale County is requesting Competitive Sealed Proposals for Home Delivered Meals for the Senior Services Division. Instructions for preparation and submission of a proposal are contained in this packet. Proposals must be typed or printed in ink.

Rockdale County provides equal opportunity for all businesses and does not discriminate against any person or business because of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, handicap, or veterans’ status. This policy ensures all segments of the business community have access to supplying the goods and services needed by Rockdale County.

PURCHASING CONTACT FOR THIS REQUEST:

All questions concerning this RFP and all questions arising subsequent to award are to be addressed to the Purchasing Division via email to Adrienne Brown, at Adrienne.m.brown@rockdalecountyga.gov or the following address:

Rockdale County Finance Department Purchasing Division

Attn: Adrienne Brown 958 Milstead Avenue Conyers, GA 30012

Phone: (770) 278-7557 E-mail: Adrienne.m.brown@rockdalecountyga.gov

To maintain a “level playing field”, and to assure that all proposers receive the same information, proposers are requested NOT to contact anyone other than the contact above until after the award of the contract. Doing so could result in disqualification of the proposer.

PROPOSAL COPIES FOR EVALUATION:

Proposal:

One (1) USB Flash Drive in Adobe PDF format will be required for review purposes. Flash Drives that are blank or have incorrect information on them will not be acceptable and may be justification for disqualification. Check your Flash Drive(s) to ensure that they have the appropriate material on it before submitting.

CONTRACT TERM:

The Contract Term will be one (1) year and with the option to renew four (4) additional one-year terms, unless cancelled in writing 30 days before the end of current term.

Because this contract contains four (4) renewal periods and the price of materials is subject to change from year to year, it is appropriate to allow the Contractor to offer price increases prior to the renewal of the contract for the following year. Therefore, 90 days prior to the end of the contract, the Contractor will advise the County in writing of their desire to renew the contract and will provide the County with an updated price list (this should be the same price list from the original bid with any necessary additions that became evident during the previous year's operations). The County will review the price increases and if necessary, negotiate with the Contractor to finalize pricing. Once both parties have agreed to the contract extension pricing, the County will prepare an Amendment to the original contract outlining the extension period, the new pricing that has been approved by both parties, and any other changes to the contract that become necessary to improve the operational effectiveness of the Agreement.

DUE DATE:

Sealed proposals will be received at the Rockdale County Finance Department, Procurement Division, 958 Milstead Avenue, Conyers, GA 30012 no later than 2:00 P.M., local time, Thursday, January 22, 2026.

Proposals received after this time will not be accepted.

mailto:Adrienne.m.brown@rockdalecountyga.gov

PRE-PROPOSAL CONFERENCE:

There will be a MANDATORY Pre-Proposal Conference held via TEAMS, at 1:30 p.m., local time, Tuesday, January 6, 2026. Prime bidders who arrive more than 5 minutes after the start of the meeting (as stated in the solicitation and by the Procurement representative’s watch) or after the discussion portion of the meeting (whichever comes first) may not be permitted to submit a bid on the project. Any questions and/or misunderstandings that may arise from this RFP may be asked and answered at the pre-proposal conference;

however, oral responses are not authoritative. Proposers are encouraged to review the RFP before attending the pre-proposal conference. Questions received after the pre-proposal conference must be submitted in writing to Adrienne.m.brown@rockdalecountyga.gov or at the above address. Any contractor who intends to submit a proposal is required to attend this meeting.

QUESTIONS AND CLARIFICATIONS:

All questions and requests for clarifications concerning this RFP must be submitted to the Purchasing Division via email to Adrienne.m.brown@rockdalecountyga.gov or at the above address no later than 2:00 p.m., local time, on Thursday, January 15, 2026. It shall be the proposer’s responsibility to seek clarification as early as possible prior to the due date and time. Written responses from the County to the questions it receives will be in an addendum and posted to the County’s website at www.rockdalecountyga.gov, under Bid Opportunities. Questions or requests for clarifications received after this deadline will not receive a response.

ADDENDA:

Answers to questions submitted that materially change the conditions and specifications of this RFP will be issued in an addendum and posted to the County’s website at www.rockdalecountyga.gov Bid Opportunities. Any discussions or documents will be considered non-binding unless incorporated and issued in an addendum.

It is the proposer’s responsibility to check the Rockdale County website at www.rockdalecountyga.gov, Bid Opportunities for any addenda that may be issued, prior to submitting a proposal for this RFP.

QUANTITIES

The quantities listed in the Proposers Response Schedule are provided as an estimate for proposal purposes.

The County will not be obligated to quantities beyond actual needs.

EQUAL BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY POLICY:

This RFP qualifies for Rockdale County Government EBO program. For questions regarding the EBO program, please contact Adrienne Brown at adrienne.m.brown@rockdalecountyga.gov or 770-278-7557.

OPEN RECORDS

The contents of the qualifications will not be made public until after an award and contract has been executed.

QUALIFICATIONS OF OFFERORS:

Proposers must have a current business license from their home-based jurisdiction and provide a copy of that license with the submittal of their proposal response.

Proposals from any offeror that is in default on the payment of any taxes, license fees, or other monies due to Rockdale County will not be accepted.

Any contractor submitting a Proposal must complete the Contractor’s Qualification Statement and Questionnaire if provided in this package.

In evaluating Proposals, the County may seek additional information from any contractor concerning such contractor’s proposal or its qualifications to construct the Project.

Proposers are to submit at least three (3) references from projects with similar experience using the materials and process in this RFP.

mailto:Adrienne.m.brown@rockdalecountyga.gov mailto:Adrienne.m.brown@rockdalecountyga.gov http://www.rockdalecountyga.gov/ http://www.rockdalecountyga.gov/ http://www.rockdalecountyga.gov/ mailto:adrienne.m.brown@rockdalecountyga.gov

DEBRIEFINGS:

In lieu of post-award debriefings, Rockdale County will provide the final evaluation Score Sheet. The Score Sheet will include the scores for all firms who responded and will typically be provided with a PDF file and e-mailed.

FINANCIAL STABILITY

The Offeror will provide financial information that would allow proposal evaluators to ascertain the financial stability of the firm.

• If a public company, the Offeror will provide their most recent audited financial report.

• If a private company, the Offeror will provide a copy of their most recent internal financial statement, and/or a letter from their financial institution, on the financial institution’s letterhead, stating the Offeror is in good standing with that financial institution.

SELECTION PROCESS:

The Rockdale County Procurement Office and Evaluation Committee makes a recommendation for award. The Board of Commissioners will make the actual award of the contract and has the authority to award the contract to a company different than the company recommended by the Procurement Office and/or Evaluation Committee.

This is a past performance/quality/price trade-off source selection in which competing offeror’s past and present performance history and product quality will be evaluated on a basis approximately equal to price. Award will be made to the responsible offeror whose proposal represents the best value after evaluation in accordance with the factors listed below. Rockdale County Board of Commissioners may reject any or all proposals and waive any technicalities or informalities if such action is in the county’s interest.

Rockdale County may evaluate proposals and award a contract without discussions with offerors. Therefore, the offeror’s initial proposal should contain the offeror’s best terms from a price and technical standpoint. The County reserves the right to conduct discussions if the County later determines them to be necessary.

Proposers will be evaluated based on the following criteria and may be called in for an interview.

The County intends to award the contract to the responsible and responsive contractor whose proposal is determined in writing to be the most advantageous to the County taking into consideration all of the evaluation criteria.

EVALUATION CRITERIA:

Offerors will be evaluated based on the following criteria and may be called in for an interview.

Respondents will have their submissions evaluated and scored. Submissions will be evaluated to assess the respondent's ability to provide anticipated services for Rockdale County. Rockdale County shall be the sole judge of the quality and the applicability of all statements of qualifications. Approach, scope, overall quality, local facilities, terms, and other pertinent considerations will be taken into account in determining acceptability.

Selection Committee shall evaluate and rank the statements of qualifications based on the following criteria:

• Staffing and Availability – Evaluation of the list of personnel specifically assigned to the RFP proposed project, including their qualifications, overall experience and recent experience on projects of similar nature and complexity to the proposed project. Organization and Staffing, evaluation of the workload of the proposing firm and the staffing to be assigned to the proposed project; time schedule of the Proposer in relation to that of the proposed project location of the offices or facilities from which the services are to be provided to the County. (20%)

• Experience/Performance – Review of personnel qualifications and experience. Management approach to projects, past performance on projects of similar nature and complexity as the proposed project. Evaluation of client references including but not limited to references submitted in qualification response, overall responsiveness to County’s needs. Provider financial capability, qualifications and experience. (25%)

• Value/Quality of Product – Review based quality and appropriateness of product for proposed project. Value and quality of product reviewed for applicability for project. (20%)

• Approach – Evaluation of the overall understanding of the scope of the proposed project;

completeness, adequacy and responsiveness to the required information of the request for proposals. (10%)

• Cost (per meal) – (20%)

• Site Inspections – (5%)

INTERVIEWS & SITE INSPECTIONS

Interviews and site inspections will be scheduled for short-listed firms at the firm’s location. Interviews will be informal and will provide respondents with an opportunity to answer any questions the selection team may have on a submission.

INSURANCE:

Before starting any work, the successful contractor must furnish to Rockdale County certificate(s) of insurance from companies doing business in Georgia. The Company shall maintain in full force and effect the following insurance during the term of the Agreement:

Coverages: Limits of Liability:

Workers’ Compensation Statutory Employers’ Liability $1,000,000.00 Bodily Injury Liability $1,000,000.00 each occurrence except Automobile $1,000,000.00 aggregate Property Damage Liability $1,000,000.00 each occurrence except Automobile $1,000,000.00 aggregate Personal & Advertising Injury Limit $1,000,000.00 Products / Completed Ops. $2,000,000.00 aggregate Automobile Bodily Injury $1,000,000.00 each person Liability $1,000,000.00 each occurrence Automobile Property Damage $1,000,000.00 each occurrence Liability Professional Liability/General Liability $1,000,000.00

All insurance shall be provided by an insurer(s) acceptable to the County and shall provide for thirty (30) days prior notice of cancellation to the County. Upon contract award, Contractor shall deliver to the County a certificate or policy of insurance evidencing Contractor’s compliance with this paragraph. Contractor shall abide by all terms and conditions of the insurance and shall do nothing to impair or invalidate the coverage.

Rockdale, GA shall be named as Additional Insured under any General Liability, Business Auto and Umbrella Policies using ISO Additional Insured Endorsement forms CG 2010 or its equivalent. Coverage shall apply as Primary and non-contributory with Waiver of Subrogation in favor of Rockdale County, Georgia.

The insurance carrier must have a minimum rating of A or higher as determined by the rating firm A.M. Best.

Certificates must contain policy number, policy limits, and policy expiration date of all policies. The Request for Proposals (RFP) number and project name must be inserted in the Description of Operations section of the certificate.

Certificates are to be issued to:

Rockdale County, Georgia 958 Milstead Avenue Conyers, GA 30012

BONDS:

Bonds are not required for this RFP.

AWARD OF CONTRACT

The Rockdale County Procurement Office and Evaluation Committee makes a recommendation for award. The Board of Commissioners will make the actual award of the contract and has the authority to award the contract to a company different than the company recommended by the Procurement Office and/or Evaluation Committee.

Rockdale County reserves the right to make no awards, multiple awards, one award for all items; or whatever the County deems to be in its best interest.

ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION REFORM AND ENFORCEMENT ACT OF 2011

Vendors submitting a Qualification package in response to this RFP must complete the Contractor Affidavit under O.C.G.A. §13-10-91(b)(1) which is provided with the RFP package to verify compliance with the Illegal Immigration Reform and Enforcement Act of 2011.

A. The form must be signed by an authorized officer of the contractor or their authorized agent.

B. The form must be notarized.

C. The contractor will be required to have all subcontractors and sub-subcontractors who are engaged to complete physical performance of services under the final contract executed between the County and the contractor complete the appropriate subcontractor and sub-subcontractor affidavits and return them to the County a minimum of five (5) days prior to any work being accomplished by said subcontractor or sub-subcontractor. Format for this affidavit can be provided to the contractor if necessary.

PIGGYBACKING

Rockdale County encourages and agrees to the successful bidder extending the pricing, terms and conditions of this solicitation or resultant contract to other governmental entities at the discretion of the successful bidder.

GENERAL INFORMATION

No proposals received after said time or at any place other than the time and place as stated in the notice shall be considered. No responsibility shall attach to Rockdale County for the premature opening of a proposal not properly addressed and identified.

WITHDRAWAL OF PROPOSAL:

A proposer may withdraw his proposal before the proposal due date, without prejudice to the proposer, by submitting a written request of withdrawal to the Rockdale County Procurement Office.

REJECTION OF PROPOSAL:

Rockdale County may reject any and all proposals and must reject a proposal of any party who has been delinquent or unfaithful in any formal contract with Rockdale County. Also, the right is reserved to waive any irregularities or informalities in any proposal in the proposing procedure. Rockdale County shall be the sole judge as to which proposal is best, and in ascertaining this, will take into consideration the business integrity, financial resources, facilities for performing the work, and experience in similar operations of the various proposers.

STATEMENT OF EXPERIENCE AND QUALIFICATIONS:

The proposer may be required, upon request, to prove to the satisfaction of Rockdale County that he/she has the skill, experience, necessary facilities and ample financial resources to perform the contract(s) in a satisfactory manner and within the required time. If the available evidence of competency of any proposer is not satisfactory, the proposal of such proposer may be rejected. The successful proposer is required to comply with and abide by all applicable federal and state laws in effect at the time the contract is awarded.

NON-COLLUSION AFFIDAVIT:

By submitting a proposal, the proposer represents and warrants that such proposal is genuine and not sham or collusive or made in the interest or in behalf of any person not therein named, that the proposer has not directly or indirectly induced or solicited any other proposer to put in a sham proposal, or any other person, firm or corporation to refrain from proposing and that the proposer has not in any manner sought by collusion to secure to that proposer any advantage over any other proposer.

INTEREST OF:

By submitting a proposal, the proposer represents and warrants that a Commissioner, Administrator, employee, nor any other person employed by Rockdale County has, in any manner, an interest, directly or indirectly, in the proposal or in the contract which may be made under it, or in any expected profits to arise there from.

DOCUMENTS DEEMED PART OF THE CONTRACT:

The notice, invitation to proposers, general conditions, and instructions for proposers, special conditions, specifications, proposal, and addenda, if any, will be deemed part of the contract.

STANDARD INSTRUCTIONS

1. The instructions contained herein shall be construed as a part of any proposal invitation and/or specifications issued by Rockdale County and must be followed by each proposer.

2. The written specifications contained in this proposal shall not be changed or superseded except by written addendum from Rockdale County. Failure to comply with the written specifications for this proposal may result in disqualification by Rockdale County.

3. All goods and materials shall be F.O.B. Destination Conyers, Georgia and no freight or postage charges will be paid by Rockdale County unless such charges are included in the proposal price.

4. The following number, RFP No. 25-27, must be written clearly on the outside of USB Flash Drive proposal envelope in order to avoid prior opening in error.

5. All USB Flash Drive proposals must be received and in-hand at proposal due date and time. Each proposer assumes the responsibility for having his/her proposal received at the designated time and place of proposal due date. USB Flash Drive Proposals received after the stated time and date may be subject to rejection without consideration, regardless of postmark. Rockdale County accepts no responsibility for mail delivery.

6. Unless otherwise stated, all proposals submitted shall be valid and may not be withdrawn for a period of 120 days from the due date.

7. The Proposal Form submitted on the USB Flash Drive must be the first page and include the name of the business, mailing address, the name, title and signature of the person submitting the proposal.

8. Rockdale County reserves the right to accept a proposal that is not the lowest price if, in the County's judgment, such proposal is in the best interest of the County and the public. The County reserves the right to reject any and all proposals.

9. Telephone, Emailed or Facsimile proposals will not be accepted.

10. No sales tax will be charged on any orders except for contracts that include construction materials being purchased through a third party.

i. Federal I.D. #58-6000882

ii. Sales Tax Exempt #308750008

11. If applicable, completed questionnaires must be signed manually. Rockdale County reserves the right to accept or reject any proposal on the basis of incomplete or inaccurate answers to the questionnaire.

12. If applicable, warranty information shall be provided.

13. Proposers shall state delivery time after receiving order.

14. Proposers shall identify any subcontractors and include an explanation of the service or product that they may provide.

PROJECT SCOPE OF SERVICES

INTRODUCTION

The Rockdale County Board of Commissioners is requesting proposals from qualified Vendors capable of preparing and delivering frozen meals that will Meet the Dietary guidelines for Americans published by the Secretaries of Health and Human Services and Agriculture, and the RDA’s (which are now included in the DRI’s) established by the Food and Nutrition Board, Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences. The meals must provide at least one-third of the Recommended Daily Allowances (RDA/DRI’s) for older persons 60 years and older. These meals will be delivered to the home of seniors or may also be provided in the form of a shelf-stable meal for emergency use by seniors in the home-delivered programs, or a combination of such meals type. The nutritional content of therapeutic/modified meals may vary according to the type of diet prescribed. Meals served include the following:

Home Delivered Meals (HDM) Lunch or Breakfast option - Monday through Friday

Shelf-Stable Meals for HDM and Congregate (2 per client-2 or 3 times per year) The successful Vendor will:

• Participate in menu planning activities to review, adjust, and complete the proposed menu cycles submitted including obtaining the information from the program participants in the menu planning process.

• Provide delivery schedule and delivery times to requested site

• Complete nutritional analysis performed by a Registered Dietician licensed by the state of Georgia, with the proposed menus to be submitted 45 days prior to the beginning of the cycle.

Vision, Mission, and Values – Rockdale County Board of Commissioners Vision: “Perfectly positioned community with a rock-solid approach dedicated to excellence in customer service, quality of life, and global economic development” Mission: “To protected and enhance the general health, safety, and welfare of the public: to provide quality public services, as determined by law and citizen needs, through innovative leadership and teamwork of its citizenry, official and employees to provide services in a fair, respectful, effective and professional manner, consistent with available human, natural, and economic resources.

Values: Professionalism, Responsiveness, Integrity, Dependability, Effectiveness

Restrictions on Communication with Staff From the issue date of this RFP until a contractor is selected and the selection is announced, Vendors are not allowed to communicate for any reason with any Rockdale County Board of Commissioners and/or Senior Center staff, except through the Issuing Officer named herein. The Rockdale County Board of Commissioners reserves the right to reject the proposal of any Vendor violating this provision.

All questions concerning this RFP must be submitted in writing to Adrienne.m.brown@rockdalecountyga.gov as the Issuing Officer. No questions will be accepted except in written format. Only written responses will be binding upon the Rockdale County Board of Commissioners.

Definition of Terms Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC) Home Delivered Meals (HDM) Meals on Wheels (MOW) Notice of Award (NOA) Request for Proposal (RFP) Rockdale County Senior Services (RCSS)

Contract Terms The contract will be on a State of Georgia fiscal year (SFY) basis (July 1- June 30). The contract will have options to renew after the original contract term, additional contract periods with a contract end date of June 30 each year.

The annual renewal of the Vendors contract shall be based on the availability of funds and the Vendors successful contract performance the preceding year.

mailto:meagan.porch@rockdalecountyga.gov

MANDATORY REQUIREMENTS

This section identifies all mandatory requirements which must be present in the proposal before further consideration will be given. Vendor’s response indicates the page number(s) where each mandatory requirement is substantiated.

Vendors Qualification Requirements - List here any mandatory qualifications for this applicant prior to being able to provide this specific program/service.

Vendor must have a minimum of 5 years’ experience providing Frozen Meal services.

Business Requirements - List here any business requirements that must be met prior to the Rockdale County Board of Commissioners accepting this proposal.

Vendor must have current Operating Permit, ServSafe Certification, Inspection Reports, include last two (2) Food Service Establishment Inspection Reports., and RD License.

Mandatory Submission Requirements – List here all mandatory submission requirements. Vendor must have completed all budget documents and narrative; must have responded to all sections of the proposal;

must have signed all required forms; must submitted the number of originals and number of copies according to the Proposal Submission requirements.

Budget Requirements – The Rockdale County Board of Commissioners provides allocation and budget forms. Vendor’s budget proposal includes a narrative that details their budget and service plan.

Vendor must submit a narrative to discuss costs and/or revenue and persons/units served.

TECHNICAL PROPOSAL

This section identifies the information which must be submitted in the Technical Proposal. Vendor must demonstrate their ability to satisfy all Qualifications and Technical Requirements to perform the required services. The technical Proposal must be structured in the following order and labeled with the corresponding titles stated below using the same outline numbers.

Company Structure - The Vendor will include the following information:

a. Vendor must submit an organizational chart displaying its overall business structure.

b. Vendor shall include in the proposal the legal form of their business organization, the state of incorporation (if a corporation), the business office location, hours of operation, and the contact name during the term of any resulting contract.

c. Vendor shall submit a list of Board of Directors and/or Advisory Board members, including their occupations and addresses.

Experience The Vendor must have at least five (5) full consecutive years’ experience as a frozen meals preparer and packaging provider. The Rockdale County Board of Commissioners reserves the right to verify all information submitted regarding Vendors experience, education and other qualifications.

The Vendor will provide a list of all organizations for whom similar services, as detailed in the RFP, have been provided during the past three (3) years. This list will include:

a. Dates of Service

b. Name of contact person

c. Title of contact person

d. Phone number of contact person

e. Description of the work performed

f. Time period of the project or contract

g. Staff months required

h. Contract Amount

i. Customer reference (including contact person, e-mail address and current telephone number)

The Vendor will also disclose any services terminated by the organizations and the reason(s) for termination.

Vendor will provide details of its experience, minimum of five (5) years, as required above. Information submitted should demonstrate that the Vendor has sufficient experience to successfully meet the requirements of this program or service.

A. Vendor will submit detailed documents of its experience as required above, to include two (2) letters of recommendation from the state or local agency where the experience was obtained which shall meet the following requirements:

1. Must be submitted on letterhead of the party submitting the recommendation and must contain current telephone numbers, mailing address, and e-mail addresses for points of contact.

2. Contact individuals submitting recommendations must be current employees of the organization and authorized to make recommendations on behalf of the organization.

3. Contact individuals should be able to attest to the Vendors qualifications relevant to experience in providing services similar to those contained in this RFP.

4. Letters of Recommendations shall be dated no more than six months

(6) prior to the proposal submission date

Financial Stability and Cash Flow The Vendor will provide financial information that would allow the Finance Department to ascertain the financial stability of the agency.

A. A copy of the Vendors most recent audit report.

B. If a private company, the Vendor will provide a copy of their most recent internal financial statement, and a letter from their financial institution, on the financial institution’s letterhead, stating the Vendors financial stability.

C. Vendors financial plan to maintain adequate cash flow without interruption to services pending reimbursement from this contract

D. A description of any cash flow problems in the recent past that could not be resolved within 90 days.

Business Litigation The Vendor will disclose any involvement by the organization or any officer or principal in any material business litigation within the last five (5) years. The disclosure will include an explanation, as well as the current status and/or disposition. Failure to fully disclose or accurately state litigation may result in the proposal not being further reviewed.

Scope of Services for Home Delivered Meals:

Meals must be packed in individual microwavable and conventional oven containers and delivered frozen to the Olivia Haydel Senior Center home-delivered meal distribution point no earlier than 6:00 a.m. and no later than 7:00 a.m. on the day such meals are to be served. Frozen box meals will be delivered on Monday. All meals delivered must be completely sealed to maintain freshness and safety.

The number of meals to be provided is an approximate number and may be less depending on funding.

(Dates will be prorated for the first year of the contract.) Federal and state regulations require that special and therapeutic/modified diets must be available.

The definition of these diets is as follows:

Special – Modification of the regular menu to meet religious and/or ethnic need(s).

Therapeutic/modified diet – a normal diet altered to meet requirements under different conditions of health or disease. The diet may be modified in consistency, content, (calories, carbohydrates, protein, fat, sodium, or specific nutrients), flavor, methods of preparation or service, and frequency of feeding. A registered dietitian must plan therapeutic menus. Food vendor must state that name and registration number of the dietitian retained by Vendor to plan therapeutic and regular meals.

The food vendor must have the capacity to provide the following types of diets:

Regular- This diet provides at least 1/3 of the DRI’s/RDA’s as established by the Food and Nutrition Board of the National Academy of Science Research Council.

NAS (No added salt) – A regular diet without added salt or high sodium food items.

NCS (No concentrated sweets) – A regular diet without concentrated sweets or sweetened beverages.

1500 ADA – This diet provides 3 ounces of meat, ½ cup vegetable, 2 breads/starches, ½ cup fruit (unsweetened), 1 fat, and 1 cup skim milk to equal 62 grams of CHO, 30 grams of protein, 15 grams of fat and 530 calories.

Mechanical soft – This diet designated to minimize the amount of chewing necessary to ingest food. It also restricts foods that may irritate the mouth or throat.

2 grams sodium – This diet designated for clients who cannot have more than 2000 mg. of sodium day.

Renal – (60 grams of protein, 2 grams sodium, 2 grams potassium) – This diet is for clients who have chronic renal insufficiency or other renal problems.

Vegetarian – This diet will vary depending on the request.

Types requested for this contract:

1. Healthy choice breakfast

2. Healthy choice dinner

3. Mechanical soft dinner

4. No pork dinner

5. No red meat dinner

6. Renal dinner

7. Vegetarian breakfast

8. Vegetarian dinner

Other Meals

Shelf-stable meals must be available for emergency and weekend use. These meals must meet the DRI/RDA requirements.

Meals that will be stored by the client for emergency use in case the conditions prevent the regular delivery of the standard meals. These meals must have a shelf life of no less than six months but prefer one (1) year.

All meals served must meet the current 1/3 of the RDAs/Adequate Intakes, Dietary Guidelines for Americans, as these reflect the most recent scientific evidence and provide the best- known guidance for meeting the nutrition needs of older adults in America. Additionally, the meals must adhere to the Georgia Department of Human Resources’ Home-Delivered Meal Standards.

Options:

• 5-day meal boxes

• 7-day meal boxes Additional conditions:

• Expiration date on box must coincide with the expiration of items on inside of box (items can be good for a longer period but not shorter)

• If shelf stable meals are not packed out by the vendor on site then the awarded vendor must identify the provider as a sub-contractor and include contact information

• Shelf-stable meals must be able to be provided to Rockdale within three weeks of the order

• If shelf-stable meal boxes are damaged upon delivery, then each damaged item must be replaced at no additional charge and within one week. Damaged goods will not be accepted and will be returned on the delivery truck at the time of delivery.

Meal Specifications

A. Serving Schedule

1. Number of Meals required per day 60-80 The quantities of meals, locations, and days stated are given as a general rule for bidding but are not guaranteed amounts. They represent the best estimate of meal ordering projections at this point.

2. Time Schedule

Meals must be delivered to the Olivia Haydel Senior Center distribution point no earlier than 6:00 a.m. and no later than 7:00 a.m. of the day such meals are to be served. Target time for delivery is 6:30 am. Frozen box meals will be delivered on Mondays.

3. Rockdale County Senior Services will not be responsible for payment of unapproved substituted menu items, inadequate portions or meals or items not delivered at specified time and temperature standards, or meals damaged during delivery.

4. In the event Vendor fails to deliver meals scheduled Vendor agrees to pay the reimbursement claims to the Purchaser promptly. Vendor will then charge to the Purchaser the agreed upon price for the quantity of meals that were actually delivered plus the quantity that were not delivered, but were replaced by the Purchaser as described above. The Vendor may not profit or gain by not serving meals in the case of a replacement meal costing less than the bidder price.

In the event the Purchaser is unable to procure any replacement meal, meals, or other food or supply item, the Purchaser will then make a deduction for the cost of each meal that did not comply with the specifications. In making meal cost deductions, the following guidelines will be used, with the specified percentages based on the total contract cost of that meal as specified in the bid:

Entrée – 50 percent Vegetable – 20 percent Milk – 10 percent Dessert – 10 percent Bread – 5 percent Disposables/Condiments – 5 percent

Additionally, the purchaser will make an additional deduction to equal the calculated unit cost of the meal.

Upon delivery of meals to the site, an authorized on-site representative of Rockdale County Senior Services must sign a receipt (furnished by the Vendor) in triplicate, evidencing the time of the receipt of food. The Vendor must adhere to the attached delivery schedule.

Holidays on which Home-Delivered Meal Service is not required.

Scheduled Holidays: (subject to approval by Board of Commissioners) *New Year’s Day Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday Presidents Day Memorial Day Juneteenth Independence Day Labor Day Columbus’ Day/Indigenous People Day Veteran’s Day Thanksgiving Holidays (Thanksgiving Day and the day following) Christmas Eve Christmas Day

* If a holiday falls on a Monday, meal will be delivered on the Friday before the Monday holiday or on the following Tuesday. Holiday schedule arrangements will be made with the Food Services Manager or the Social Services Manager.

Menu Planning

The menus must be submitted by the Vendor’s Registered Dietitian to Rockdale County Senior Services (RCSS) at least six (6) weeks prior to planned implementation to allow adequate time for review and approval by the Rockdale County Board of Commissioners/Olivia Haydel Senior Center and/or Nutrition Site Council and the ARC Registered Dietitian. Approved menus may not be modified without prior written permission from Rockdale County. The Vendor must supply sufficient copies of each approved home-delivered meal menu for posting at the home-delivered meal distribution site. Each menu must show day of week and date of each meal.

Vendor must submit a copy of proposed four-week cycle menu and a computerized nutritional analysis with proposal.

Menu planning must adhere to the following stipulations

a. Regular and Special Meals- the Vendor must agree in writing that all regular and special menus will be planned and written on a minimum four-week cycle by a registered dietician. The Vendor’s Registered Dietician must agree to meet with the Rockdale County’s staff and Site Council representatives in order to change menus, as required, on a quarterly basis and to revise menus to accommodate participant preferences (ethnic and religious backgrounds must be taken into consideration). Food Vendors must respond to the preferences and evaluations of the majority of the nutrition program participants within two weeks from date of receipt of a request from Rockdale County and / or ARC Registered Dietician. The vendor must submit a four-week cycle menu and a computerized nutrient analysis with proposal.

b. Therapeutic/Modified Meals- The Vendor must agree that therapeutic/modified menus will be planned and written on a three-month cycle (optional four-month cycle) by a registered dietician.

c. The Vendor must submit the name and registration number of the dietician. The Georgia Dietetic Association Manual must be followed in planning the therapeutic meals. Specific information related to therapeutic diets, such as number of calories, amount of carbohydrates (for diabetic diet) or amount of sodium (low sodium diets), must be provided along with the menu.

d. The Food Vendor must have the capability of providing shelf-stable meals. Shelf-stable meals must meet one-third DRI/RDA requirements. Prior written approval by RCSS/ARC Registered Dietician for shelf-stable meals must be received by the Food Vendor prior to serving and may not be changed by the vendor without written approval from RCSS/ARC Registered Dietician. Vendor must submit a written nutritional analysis of shelf-stable meals with the proposal. Additionally, a copy of the proposed menu for shelf-stable meals must be submitted with the proposal.

e. The Vendor must agree to provide a written nutritional analysis of the regular Home

Delivered Meals menu during the contract period.

f. Permission to make menu substitutions must be requested in writing by the Food Vendor two weeks in advance and must be approved in writing, before use, by RCSS and/or the ARC Registered Dietician.

Meal Preparation Site(s)

The Vendor must specify in writing the location of meal preparation site(s) and give written permission for inspection by Rockdale County Senior Services Representatives prior to awarding of the contract. The Department of Human Resources Health Department establishes standards for meal preparation sites. In order to test compliance with these standards, the proposal must describe the size of the preparation area, the amount of space available for freezer storage, the amount of space for dry storage and the methods to be used in the cleaning of all storage, serving and transportation equipment. Vendors who prepare frozen/chilled meals on-site must be equipped with blast freezer/chiller and other equipment necessary for safe food processing. Additionally, the Vendor must assure that written procedures for preparing frozen/chilled meals, based upon local, state, and federal standards, are posted in the kitchen where meals are prepared and processed. Frozen/chilled meals must be prepared and processed under the guidance/supervision of a Registered Dietician or persons with comparable nutrition expertise.

Monitoring Once Rockdale County has entered into a contract with the selected Vendor for the applicable fiscal year (FY), the ARC Registered Dietitian and /or RCSS will retain the right to conduct periodic, unannounced inspections to the Food Vendor’s meal preparation site(s) to ensure that proper food handling procedures, sanitation, and health standards are being followed.

Rockdale County Senior Services and the ARC Registered Dietitian reserve the right to inspect, examine and obtain such information as it may need, to determine and satisfy itself, at its discretion, that the Vendor can meet the stipulations of the proposal (i.e. contacting previous clients).

Upon monitoring if discrepancies are found, these will be listed as a citation. All citations must be noted on the Corrective Action Plan (CAP) and corrected within 30 days. Pictures and copies of documents (i.e., logs, etc.) are required to be included in the CAP.

Repeated problems with deliveries, quality or other instances may necessitate follow-up monitoring visits.

Contact Person and notifications Selected vendor is to provide a delivery contact person that can be reached in the early morning hours on delivery day. If vendor is to be late with the delivery, they must give notification and an estimated delivery time.

Ordering Rockdale will need the ability to order 1 week in advance of delivery and the ability to change the order up to 3 days in advance of delivery.

Invoice Vendor must have the ability to send a once-a-month invoice via email and allow a 30-day turnaround for payment. The vendor will itemize the invoice according to the number of boxes and types of meals ordered.

Education RD is to provide a monthly educational handout concerning nutrition that can be distributed to home delivered meals clients and center clients. Education topics should meet OAA/DAS guidelines.

Meal Pattern Requirements

a. Food Groups

(1) In addition to providing meals that meet the (2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines) and 1/3 of the RDA’s/Adequate Intakes, the meal should emphasize foods high in fiber, calcium, and protein.*****The selected foods must vary from day to day. The food items within the meat, vegetable, and dessert groups must be different for the same days of each week, thus providing a variety of foods and nutrients.

(2) Total RDA’s/AI’s***amount must be served. (Refer to Dietary Reference Intakes for Older Adults). % requirements for protein, carbohydrates and fiber must be met.

(3) Meals planned and served must not contain more than: Up to 35% of total calories:

25.2 grams/650 calorie meal

27.2 grams/700 calorie meal Saturated fat Up to 10% of total calories (7.2-7.7 grams)

(4) Whole grain/high fiber bread products must be served at least twice a week.

(5) Foods must be selected, stored, and prepared to assure maximum nutritional content.

(6) Foods must be attractive in color and texture, non-greasy, and appealing to encourage maximum individual consumption.

(7) Standardized recipes must be used in preparation of all food. Recipes must yield all requirements of the meal pattern.

b. Meal Pattern

Nutrition Guidelines Requirements

Meat or Alternates Nutrition Guidelines Requirements

Address capacity of venior to provide possible alternates

• Holiday meals for Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas

• Option for clients to choose to have cranberry juice instead of milk

• Option for Rockdale to change meal types for clients within the same month

• Option to provide educational materials in Spanish

Delivery of Food The Vendor must submit a delivery plan stating the proposed delivery system and the time of delivery base on the attached delivery schedule and assume responsibility for timely delivery of meals prepared in a central location.

The Home Delivered Meal delivered to a distribution site must be transported in sanitized, National Sanitation Federation (NSF) approved temperature- retaining containers (specify products to be used) to maintain the following minimum temperature standards:

Hot foods must be delivered, maintained and served to the clients at a minimum temperature of 140oF including the last meal. The desirable minimum temperature for holding heated food is 150o F. The holding temperature must not exceed 165o F, and the holding time should be as short as possible. The holding time must not exceed four hours (from the final stage of preparation to serving time). Rockdale County Senior Services prefers that meals be delivered frozen for Home Delivered.

1. Cold foods must be delivered and served to the clients at a temperature of 40o F or below.

2. Frozen foods must be delivered to a site at a temperature of 32oF or below.

3. Natural food should be served at room temperature.

(Examples include fresh fruits, packaged crackers, cookies, etc)

The Food Vendor is responsible for keeping delivery containers, trucks and ice packs clean. The delivery containers must be tightly closed to prevent heat loss. The Vendor must have sufficient back-up containers.

Arrival food temperatures must be recorded on the daily meal ticket.

The Vendor must submit a plan in the proposal for the delivery of frozen meals to the nutrition centers in case of emergency. Such emergency plans should cover those that are caused by weather conditions, vehicle breakdown, contamination or spoilage of food, and food shortages.

In case of inclement weather Vendor must contact kitchen coordinator before delivery.

Health Inspection Requirement A copy of the Vendor’s current Health Inspection Report must be submitted along with the proposal. The Vendor’s premises must be open for inspection by the Department of Human Resources, ARC, and Rockdale County, the County Service Provider and/or local officials. The bidder will be required to correct any deficiencies cited in the health inspection report prior to contracting with Rockdale County Senior Services.

Training Capacity for the vendor to provide training in food handling, portion control, proper care of equipment, temperature, and necessary follow-up training on a quarterly schedule to appropriate the RCSS Staff and volunteers.

Program Legislation, Regulation, Program Standards and/or Guidelines:

Compliance with the following Program Legislation, Regulations, Program Standards and/or Guidelines is mandatory.

Older Americans Act Dietary Guidelines for Americans Georgia Department of Human Services Program Guidelines for Nutrition

Program Description – Meal Service Narrative

1. Food Service Management: Briefly describe your food service management system and organization and include information about staff and sites.

2. Kitchen Facility: Location and brief description of the facility where meals will be prepared and include information about kitchen capacity and status of equipment (equipment available; age of equipment; plans for replacement.)

3. Menu Planning: Briefly describe the menu planning process and who will be responsible for planning the menus.

4. Food Preparation: Briefly describe the proposed food preparation system (e.g. hot meals prepared daily vs. Meals prepared a day ahead and chilled/frozen). Include information about the time frames for meal preparation.

5. Food Packaging System: Briefly describe the proposed food packaging system; specify brand names of materials/products used.

6. Food Delivery System: Describe the proposed food delivery system, including the number and types of vehicles use, types of equipment used to transport food items, and the time required to make the deliveries.

7. Food Purchasing System: Describe your food purchasing system, indicating procurement process used (i.e., competitive sealed bid vs. informal bid). Attach copies of your advertisement for potential contracted food suppliers and include sample agreements with food suppliers, if available.

8. Food Safety: Briefly describe the food handling system in place for procurement, food storage, food preparation and food delivery and how you plan to handle emergencies

B. Vendor Required Information

1. Check one: Catered Meals - Vendor Central Kitchen/On-Site Preparation

2. Insurance Information:

All insurance shall be provided by an insurer(s) acceptable to the County and shall provide for thirty (30) days prior notice of cancellation to the County. Upon contract award, Contractor shall deliver to the County a certificate or policy of insurance evidencing Contractor’s compliance with this paragraph. Contractor shall abide by all terms and conditions of the insurance and shall do nothing to impair or invalidate the coverage.

Rockdale, GA shall be named as Additional Insured under any General Liability, Business Auto and Umbrella Policies using ISO Additional Insured Endorsement forms CG 2010 or its equivalent. Coverage shall apply as Primary and non-contributory with Waiver of Subrogation in favor of Rockdale County, Georgia.

The insurance carrier must have a minimum rating of A or higher as determined by the rating firm A.M. Best.

Certificates to contain policy number, policy limits and policy expiration date of all policies issued in accordance with this contract.

3. Briefly describe…