The Department of Agriculture, specifically the Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), is seeking contractors for the procurement of fish and fishery products as outlined in the Final Supplement 512, effective January 2026. This opportunity requires contractors to be USDA/NOAA SIP Approved Establishments, comply with FDA regulations, and maintain an AMS-approved food defense plan, with specific updates including revised raw material requirements for shrimp and new labeling mandates. The products are essential for federal food assistance programs, emphasizing quality assurance, domestic sourcing, and compliance with stringent inspection protocols. Interested parties should prepare technical proposals detailing product specifications and quality measures, as well as be ready for pre-award assessments and post-award audits, with all associated costs borne by the contractor.

Supplement 512 Fish and Fishery Products -  January 2026.pdf

Supplement 512 to the AMS Master Solicitation outlines requirements for purchasing fish and fishery products for federal food assistance programs. It specifies that contractors must be USDA/NOAA SIP Approved Establishments, comply with FDA regulations, and have an AMS-approved food defense plan. The document details two inspection types: audit-based grading and onsite finished product grading. Contractors must submit a technical proposal outlining product details, quality assurance, and corrective actions, subject to USDA approval and pre-award onsite capability assessments. Post-award audits will also be conducted. The supplement also covers product specifications for Atlantic Fish Fillet Portions, Pacific Seafood Items (Rockfish, Whiting, Salad Shrimp), and Wild-Caught Frozen Shrimp, emphasizing domestic origin, specific portion weights, packaging, labeling (including allergen statements and USDA/NOAA shields), and checkloading procedures. All audit, monitoring, and certification costs are borne by the contractor.

The Agricultural Marketing Service has posted a Final Supplement 512 for Fish and Fishery Products, January 2026.  Primary updates include: adjusting the raw material requirements for shrimp from 18 months to 12 months.  This update was required by USDC/NOAA to meet their Grade A requirements for the finished product; contractor Checkloading certificate now requires the industry to list product temperatures at the time of loading; Sect. 221.5 shipping case closure requirement added to the Atlantic Fish Fillet and Walleye FPPS; under the "Product Assurance" section in all four FPPSs, a statement informing vendors they need to provide written proof from USDC/NOAA that they have approved the "Product Management Plan" to support that the finished product meets the criteria to bear the corresponding grade mark; under the delivered product section in all four FPPS's, a statement informing vendors that truck seal numbers must also be recorded on the BOL, per the Master Solicitation; Wild Shrimp and Pacific Seafood FPPS's included a new statement informing vendors that they need to maintain a "Letter of Conformance" from raw material shrimp suppliers that the product was pre-processed by an approved USDC/NOAA establishment, additive free, stored at 0 degrees or below for no more than 12 months, and meets the domestic origin as stated in the MS; Walleye FPPS needed to include labeling requirements for commercial labeling with colors (Sect. 222.2.9).

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