Up to $1.4B to Agility for Food Supply to U.S. Forces in Iraq
Al Asad AB, Iraq
The U.S. Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) exercised its 3rd option period on a contract with Agility Defense & Government Services (DGS) for the supply and distribution of food and non-food products to U.S. forces in Iraq. The maximum value of the 18-month extension is $1.4 billion.
The contract extension requires Agility DGS to handle procurement, shipping, warehousing and distribution of food and non-food products for all branches of the U.S. military. Agility DGS originally won the $4.6 billion Subsistence Prime Vendor contract (SPM300-05-D-3128) in December 2005. The extension covers the 3rd and final option year.
DID has more on the Subsistence Prime Vendor Program…
As a vendor, Agility supplies meat, poultry, fish, fresh fruits, fresh vegetables, an array of prepared and processed foods, beverages, fresh and frozen bakery products, dairy and ice cream products, unitized group rations, meals ready to eat (MREs), health and comfort packs, and other products. Agility operates a large food warehouse in Kuwait and owns a fleet of dry, chilled and refrigerated trucks that deliver from that warehouse to bases in Iraq.
Begun in 1994, the Subsistence Prime Vendor Program uses private contractors to supply food to the U.S. military following the U.S. commercial food-service distribution system, which reduces storage requirements and spoilage costs. Dining facility managers order from prime vendors with a 2-day turnaround on deliveries. Most vendors also accept last-minute emergency orders. Depending on their locations, dining facility managers can choose from 700 to 50,000 items from vendor catalogs that are updated weekly. Vendors must comply with food safety and handling regulations mandated by the Food and Drug Administration and the Agriculture Department.
Operations in Afghanistan and Iraq were the first conflicts to test vendors’ ability to support troops in combat.
