This is a sources sought notice to look for interested small business vendors who are able to provide United Stated Department of Agriculture (USDA), Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration (GIPSA), Technology and Science Division (TSD) for ground corn and wheat that is naturally contaminated with deoxynivalenol at greater than or equal to 30 ppm. GIPSA provides official mycotoxin testing services throughout the United States for domestic and export grains, oilseeds, and processed-grain commodities. Official testing services are available for aflatoxins, deoxynivalenol (DON), fumonisins, ochratoxin A, and zearalenone. The test kit design and performance criteria for quantitative DON test kits are being revised to include evaluation of test kits at 30 ppm DON, therefore is seeking to purchase corn and wheat contaminated with deoxynivalenol at greater than or equal to 30 ppm to support this revision to the evaluation program.

The minimum requirements of the contaminated corn and wheat are listed below.
1. 10 kg of ground corn having an average concentration of least 30 ppm deoxynivalenol.
2. 10 kg of ground wheat having an average concentration of at least 30 ppm deoxynivalenol.
3. The corn and wheat must be naturally contaminated with DON. Fungal inoculation may be used to generate the contaminated materials. If fungal inoculation is employed, a fungal species and strain isolated in the Continental United States and relevant to wheat and corn contamination must be used.
4. All material must be ground fine enough that 100% will pass through a standard size 20 sieve.
5. The DON concentration in each material must be determined using the current GIPSA reference method for DON or a validated method having equivalent performance (accuracy and precision). The GIPSA reference method is available upon request.
6. A minimum of 21 subsamples of each material must be analyzed to determine the concentration. Each material must be homogeneous. The relative standard deviation for the concentration of each material must be less than or equal to 10%.
7. The materials must be shipped in a manner to ensure integrity.

Interested sources must submit the following:
• DUNS Number and Point of Contact
• Statement of Capabilities
• Additional information about an available product meeting the above specifications (or equivalent specifications)

This is not a request for quote, but instead a market research method to determine interested sources. A determination by the Government not to compete this requirement based on responses to this notice is solely within the discretion of the Government. No requests for capability briefings will be honored as a result of this notice. Interested sources who submit data are responsible for appropriately marking information if it is proprietary in nature. The Government will not award a contract based on the information received, nor reimburse participants for information or samples they provide. Information or materials provided is strictly voluntary.

Submissions shall be EMAILED ONLY to Kimyen Nguyen, the Contract Specialist, at [email protected]. Responses are due no later than Aug 3rd, 2016 @ 12:00 pm central time.

Bid Protests Not Available