NCFS-TIE 2025 Longleaf Pine Cone Harvest

The North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, specifically the North Carolina Forest Service (NCFS), has issued an Invitation for Bid (IFB) for a 2025 Longleaf Pine Cone Harvest located in Bladen Lakes State Forest, Bladen County. The procurement seeks a contractor to collect approximately 3,000 bushels of pine cones across 52 total acres, with 2,000 bushels to be collected from a 32-acre site and 1,000 bushels from a 20-acre site. Key contractor requirements include providing four 4-wheel-drive lifts with a minimum 60-foot working height, collecting cones manually or with clippers, placing cones in bags by family number, and minimizing tree and limb damage. The contractor must also provide a job foreman capable of communicating in English and the crew's primary language. The bid was issued on August 22, 2025, with a bid opening date of September 22, 2025, at 2:00 PM ET, and a non-mandatory site visit scheduled for September 2, 2025, at 9:00 AM ET. The contract term will extend from final contract execution through November 25, 2025, with payment structured on a per-bushel basis.

The solicitation explicitly encourages participation from small, minority, and women-owned businesses, with a stated goal of 10% utilization of diverse firms as 1st or 2nd tier subcontractors. The North Carolina Forest Service will provide necessary supporting infrastructure, including crates, sacks, and containers for measuring and labeling cones. Bidders are permitted to quote a unit price per bushel for each site, with a total allocation of 1,250 bushels per site. While specific budget ranges are not detailed, the per-bushel pricing structure suggests flexibility in potential contract value. The procurement appears designed to create opportunities for diverse business participation while meeting the NCFS's specific pine cone harvest requirements. No incumbent vendor information is provided in the solicitation documents, indicating this may be a new or rebid contract opportunity focused on precise forest management and seed collection objectives.