MDE OHNS Purchase of Farm to Family Activity Books

The state of Michigan, specifically the Michigan Department of Education (MDE), is issuing an Invitation to Negotiate (ITN) for the proprietary purchase of Michigan Farm to Family activity books from the Michigan Fitness Foundation (MFF). MFF holds the exclusive intellectual property rights to these products and is the sole authorized provider. MDE intends to purchase various quantities of four different activity books totaling $375,339.85, including shipping costs, to distribute to sponsors in Michigan's Summer Food Service Program. The pricing for the activity books ranges from $1.24 to $1.82 per book, with total quantities ranging from 49,230 to 60,840 books per title. The contract award will be made by Purchase Order, and questions regarding the ITN must be submitted to the Solicitation Manager by August 29, 2021, with answers posted on the SIGMA VSS website.

This appears to be a sole-source procurement, as MFF is the only vendor permitted to produce and distribute the required activity books. The ITN indicates that potential bidders who do not agree that MFF is the sole source must submit a written response to the Solicitation Manager by September 2, 2021, describing their equivalent offering. No other set-aside designations or restrictions on the types of organizations that can respond are mentioned. The existing contract's incumbent vendor is MFF, and the total contract value is $375,339.85.