Buy American Provision
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Buy American Provision
Food Nutrition Services Guidance, 210.21 (d) defines a domestic commodity as one that is produced and processed in the United States and is substantially using agricultural commodities produced in the United States.
As with all other program requirements, School Food Authorities must comply with the Buy American provisions, to the maximum extent possible.The guidance memo SP 06-20 describes actions that School Food Authorities can take to comply with the Buy American requirements, such as:
- Including a Buy American clause in all procurement documents (product specifications, bid solicitations, request for proposals, purchase orders, etc.);
- Monitoring contractor performance;
- Requiring suppliers to certify the origin of the product;
- Examining product packaging for identification of the country of origin; and
- Asking the supplier for specific information about the percentage of U.S. content in the food product.
School Food Authorities must ensure that all procurements using funds from the nonprofit school food service account comply with the Buy American provisions. This includes foods that are sold to students as a la carte food items.
Procurement Questions Relevant to the Buy American Provision – Guidance Memo SP 06-20.
Buy American Reminder – Guidance Memo SP 06-32