The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is asking suppliers to bid on USD 1.98 million pounds worth of frozen Alaska pollock for 2021.
The deadline for bids is 4 December 2020, the agency said in its solicitation notice.
The USDA plans to buy 1.178 million pounds of pollock sticks, 608,000 pounds of pollock fillets, and 198,000 pounds of frozen bulk pollock cartons for the National School Lunch Program and other Federal Food and Nutrition Assistance Programs.
The agency purchased its third-highest ever annual amount of pollock in 2020 at nearly USD 26.4 million (EUR 22 million), partially due to increased hunger relief efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic.
"The past four years have brought unprecedented volumes of USDA purchases of wild Alaska pollock and the federal government has now established itself as a very important customer to our members who work to bring this delicious and nutritious fish caught in the pristine waters of Alaska to tables around the world,” Genuine Alaska Pollock Producers CEO Craig Morris told SeafoodSource. “This most recent invitation is certainly notable in its scale and, although it is too early to know how much wild Alaska pollock USDA will purchase in fiscal year 2021, it has certainly sent a great signal that USDA remains an important customer to our membership.”
Winning suppliers will make deliveries to numerous cities between March and June 2021.
Photo courtesy of ffolas/Shutterstock
