Dear readers:
This upcoming event may be of interest to you.
WHAT: Farm-to-School pre-bid informational meeting in Manistee
WHEN: July 18, 2008 at 3:30 pm
WHERE: Manistee High School Conference Room, 525 12th St., Manistee, MI
Farmers and vendors are invited to attend a farm to school pre-bid meeting
in Manistee. This farm to school project is a collaborative effort of the
school food service directors of Manistee Area Public Schools and Kaleva
Norman Dickson/Bear Lake Schools in Manistee County. These school food
service directors are primarily interested in purchasing apples, apple
slices, and potatoes for their school meals programs next school year, but
they are open to learning more about the availability of other fruits and
vegetables available from growers and vendors in northwest lower Michigan.
All interested farmers and vendors are invited to attend this informational
pre-bid meeting or contact the food service directors directly to learn more
about this exciting market opportunity! Please see the letter copied below
for more details and contact information. As the letter notes, this meeting
is for informational and planning purposes ONLY. An official bid notice
will be released later in the summer, prior to the start of school.
All school districts are interested in fresh fruits and vegetables to serve
as part of the National School Lunch Program beginning with the 2008/2009
school year. We will release an official notice for price quotes in August,
for purchases beginning in September. This pre-bid meeting is for
informational and planning purposes only.
We are primarily interested in procuring apples, apple slices, and potatoes.
Please visit
http://www.michiganorganic.msu.edu/Portals/organic/FarmToSchoolPreBidPricing
.doc for a sample product availability and pricing form, and note that
varieties, sizes, and pack of products listed here are potentially flexible
until we award contracts, depending upon available products and the food
service directors’ needs. Also, please make us aware of any additional
products you would like us to consider, along with their specifications,
pricing, and availability. All districts reserve the right to award multiple
contracts to multiple vendors, and do not guarantee any specific ordering
volumes but we will be happy to discuss our anticipated use. Additionally,
successful vendors may be asked to host school field trips and/or visit
schools within the districts and present their products to students and
staff as an educational tool and hands-on method for introducing local
produce within the school or cafeteria.
If you are interested in partnering with these school districts, please
attend the meeting on July 18th. If you have additional questions, please
contact Kathy Gutowski, Director of Nutrition Services, Manistee Area Public
Schools at 231-398-3695 or [log in to unmask], or Jenice Momber, Food
Service Director, Kaleva Norman Dickson/Bear Lake Schools at (231) 477-5353
ext 304 or [log in to unmask]
Hope this was of interest to you!
- Vicki Morrone and Kate Leitch
If you would like to access previous postings to the Mich-Organic listserv you can copy and paste the following URL into your browser address bar
http://list.msu.edu/archives/mich-organic.html
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