Justification and Approval for Other Than Full and Open Competition

This is a Justification and Approval (J&A) document for a Design-Build contract to construct a New World Screwworm (NWS) Sterile Fly Production Facility in Hidalgo County, Texas. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Animal and Plant Inspection Service is the requiring activity, with the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Fort Worth District serving as the contracting activity. The procurement is authorized under 10 U.S.C. §3204(a)(2) for Unusual and Compelling Urgency, limiting Phase I design-build competition to five contractors. USACE identified five qualified firms through comprehensive market research that demonstrated technical capability, bonding capacity of $1B–$12B, and relevant experience in biosafety level (BSL) 2/BSL-3 facility design and construction. The facility must produce up to 300 million sterile flies per week to support the USDA's Sterile Insect Technique (SIT) program to prevent NWS spread into the United States. Phase I design and construction to produce 100 million sterile flies weekly is estimated at 12–18 months, with the remaining 200 million fly capacity potentially extending to 48 months. The estimated procurement value is redacted in the document.

The J&A justifies the limited competition exception based on the urgent need to prevent a devastating NWS outbreak originating from recent cases in Mexico and Central America, just 70 miles from the U.S. border as of September 2025. An uncontrolled outbreak would cause significant economic devastation (estimated at $1.8 billion in Texas alone), public health crises, international trade disruption, and national security threats to food security. Full and open competition would require 135 days minimum, unacceptable given the threat timeline. The document details comprehensive market research efforts, including outreach to over 400 vendors and analysis of 11 responses from Sources Sought notice W9126G26R1AS7. Of those responding, only five firms demonstrated adequate BSL experience, bonding capacity, and integrated design-build capability required for the specialized biosecurity and containment requirements of sterile fly production. The approval was signed November 5, 2025, by the Senior Procurement Executive, authorizing expedited contract award.