The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has announced its intention to expand its purchases of wild-caught freshwater walleye for its Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDPIR).
According to Chelsie Prange, an agricultural marketing specialist with the USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service Commodity Procurement Program, the agency is asking interested vendors to provide their supply capacity and possible pack size configurations.
The FDPIR aims to increase access to healthy foods on Native American reservations throughout the country. USDA distributes both food and administrative funds to participating Indian Tribal Organizations and state agencies through the program.
This move follows calls the USDA put out to suppliers earlier this year for walleye that would go toward federal nutrition programs. In May, Redby, Minnesota, U.S.A.-based Red Lake Nation Fisheries won a contract worth USD 972,000 (EUR 897,000) to supply the fish.
Additionally, the USDA said in April it would purchase more Alaska pollock, salmon, and other seafood for the National School Lunch Program (NSLP), as well as for other federal food nutrition assistance programs. The agency was seeking catfish fillets; breaded, oven-ready catfish strips; canned pink salmon; salmon fillets; Alaska pollock fillets, surimi, and breaded sticks; Atlantic pollock fillets and breaded nuggets; haddock fillets; and ocean perch fillets.
Suppliers interested in supplying freshwater walleye should email Prange at [email protected] or the USDA’s general commodity procurement staff email address: [email protected].
