A new opportunity with the City’s emergency feeding program has just been made available to all food services businesses in NYC. The GetFoodNYC emergency food distribution program has released a competitive bid for local vendors to produce and deliver meal packs.
As part of the City’s ongoing Covid-19 emergency response, DSNY is seeking vendors to deliver prepared meals to home-bound older adults in New York City who lack access and the economic means to reliable options of obtaining food during this continuing pandemic. Vendors must be capable of preparing, packing, and delivering 6-meal packs containing 3 lunches and 3 dinners to at least 600 older adults in their homes at least two times a week, meeting a minimum requirement of 1,200 6-meal packs weekly. The meals—fresh, chilled and/or frozen meals or a combination of these— must be freshly prepared for this program and must meet the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene’s (DOHMH) comprehensive nutrition standards provided in the solicitation. Vendors are prohibited from providing prepackaged frozen meals that are available in commercial stores. The six-meal pack must have variety across the meals, ensuring that recipients are not provided the same lunches or dinners over three days. As part of this solicitation, DSNY is seeking specialty meals—like certified Halal, certified Glatt Kosher, Latin, Pan-Asian, Spanish, vegetarian and others—as well as non-specialty meals, all meeting the required nutrition standards.
Because this bid must meet FEMA requirements for reimbursement, it includes several somewhat strict participation requirements.
Highlights of the GetFoodNYC program include:
- Short 15-day response window
- Must provide a minimum of 7,200 total meals per week
- Meal packs must include 6 meals per box and can include fresh, shelf-stable or frozen foods
- Meals must meet strict nutritional guidelines
- Vendor must provide door-to-door delivery of the meals
- Meals should, where possible, be culturally sensitive
- Restaurants and catering businesses may apply alone or as a group of businesses.
- Price and local sourcing will be prioritized
Bids must be sent by 4PM July 21, 2020 to NYCFOOD@DSNY.NYC.GOV the complete bid booklet is available here.
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