SPECIAL NOTICE
R -- Oraganic Seed Certification
- Notice Date
- 7/22/2013
- Notice Type
- Special Notice
- NAICS
- 813920
— Professional Organizations
- Contracting Office
- Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Administrative Services Division/Contracting, 100 North 6TH Street, Butler Square 5TH Floor, Minneapolis, Minnesota, 55403
- ZIP Code
- 55403
- Solicitation Number
- req_651579
- Point of Contact
- Nathan Johnson,
- E-Mail Address
-
nathan.d.johnson@aphis.usda.gov
(nathan.d.johnson@aphis.usda.gov)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- N/A
- Description
- JUSTIFICATION FOR OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION AGENCY: USDA - Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) - National Organic Program CONTRACTING ACTIVITY: USDA-APHIS-MRPBDS Minneapolis Business Services 1. Description of Contract Action: The USDA National Organic Program (NOP) proposes to award a contract to the Association of Official Seed Certifying Agencies (AOSCA). The objective of this contract is to better understand the organic seed market, communicate about the organic seed market and resources to certifying agents and organic operations, and identify needs for increased sources of specific types of organic seed. 2. Description of Supplies or Services: The scope of the project includes reporting about organic seed availability; developing educational outreach materials about the organic seed market and seed locator resources; and providing specific targeted reports about the types and locations of certain types of organic seeds available to organic producers. 3. Reasons for Sole Source: Founded in 1919, the Association of Official Seed Certifying Agencies (AOSCA) is a 501(c)5 nonprofit organization that assists clients in the production, identification, distribution, and promotion of certified classes of seed and other crop propagation materials. It has member Agencies across the US, plus global member seed certifying agencies located in Canada, Argentina, Chile, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. A key AOSCA service offering of interest for this project is the "Organic Seed Finder" database, the definitive source of organic seed information for the organic industry. The deliverables required for this project depend heavily on data held within the Organic Seed Finder database, which is controlled and managed by AOSCA. It is the only known database of its kind, and has been endorsed by key leading organizations in the organic community, such as the Organic Materials Review Institute (OMRI), the Accredited Certifiers Association, the Organic Seed Alliance, and several certifiers and large organic companies. 4. Efforts to Obtain Competition: There is no other organization that maintains a comprehensive listing of organic seed sources, and that can provide the reports required for this project. 5. Fair and Reasonable Determination The estimated price is fair and reasonable based on price analysis and comparison with similar actions. 6. Market Research: Market research has revealed that AOSCA is the only organization with access to a database that holds the data needed for this project. For the reasons described in Element 3 above, the NOP recommends AOSCA for this project. 7. Other Supporting Factors. In 2011, Organic Seed Alliance launched the Organic Seed Working Group to engage diverse stakeholders in collaborative efforts that improve organic farmers' ability to meet the National Organic Program (NOP) requirement for using certified organic seed. The working group's first objective was to facilitate the development and implementation of a new organic seed database. At that time, stakeholders agreed that a reliable national organic seed database is a necessary tool for encouraging the use of, and investments in, organic seed. In addition, the NOP's advisory board, the National Organic Standards Board recommended establishing a database in 2005 and reiterated this priority again in 2008. At the time of database development in 2011, the Working Group agreed that the Association of Official Seed Certifying Agencies (AOSCA) would be the host of the database, with advisory groups contributing to database design, funding, and promotion to support the database's effectiveness and sustainability. The resulting Organic Seed Finder database was launched in 2012, and has been accepted as the definitive source of organic seed sources for the organic community. It continues to be hosted and managed by AOSCA with support from organic community members and seed vendors. 8. Interested Sources: Interested Sources must contact the contracting officer at Nathan.d.johnson@aphis.usda.gov and provide documentation showing that they have the applicable information. 9. Actions to Increase Competition: Not applicable, as the product and services provided by AOSCA are unique within this industry, and were built with input and collaboration by a range of players in the organic community. 10. Technical Certification Certified by Technical Representative 11. Contracting Officer Certification Certified by Contracting Officer
- Web Link
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- Record
- SN03123596-W 20130724/130722235144-444a95a72f7c7c9a1b3a2e01e65ed480 (fbodaily.com)
- Source
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