Planting seed corn on USDA fields

The Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service is soliciting quotations for seed corn planting services at the National Animal Disease Center (NADC) in Ames, Iowa through Request for Quotation 1232SA26Q0378. The contractor must plant seed corn on government-owned land for use in feeding research animals, with specific technical requirements including 30-inch row width, 35,000 seeds per acre, 2-inch planting depth, and proper seed-to-soil contact. The contractor must supply all equipment, supplies, tractors, planters, fuel, and labor, while the government will furnish the seed corn and prepare the fields. Award will be made to the lowest price technically acceptable offer based on evaluation criteria of price, technical acceptability, and past performance. Questions must be submitted by March 31, 2026 at 12:00 PM Eastern Time, and quotations are due by April 3, 2026 at 12:00 PM Eastern Time, with submissions sent via email to katelyn.nelson@usda.gov.

This is a Total Small Business Set-Aside under NAICS code 115112 with a $9.5 million size standard, with no current incumbent identified in the solicitation documents. The government anticipates planting up to 75 acres under the base contract (CLIN 0001), with an optional additional 15 acres (CLIN 1001), for a total potential acreage of approximately 90 acres across 12 fields. The period of performance runs from April 15, 2026 to May 15, 2026, with planting required to commence within four business days of the government's request. A firm-fixed price purchase order is anticipated, with invoices to be submitted through the Invoice Processing Platform. The place of performance is 1920 Dayton Avenue, Ames, Iowa 50010, and delivery is F.O.B. Destination with pricing to include all associated costs and estimated shipping costs.