MULTIPLE NATIONAL INDIVIDUAL STANDING OFFERS FOR SAMPLE COLLECTION AND CHEMICAL TESTING OF FOOD PRODUCTS FOR THE CANADIAN FOOD INSPECTION AGENCY

Summary

To establish multiple National Individual Standing Offers (NISOs) for the provision of commercial laboratory services related to chemical hazards found in food products for the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA).

The CFIA is a federal regulatory agency with a mission to safeguard food, animals and plants, which enhances the health and well-being of Canada’s people, environment and economy. As Canada’s largest science-based regulator, the CFIA works with various partners to support and develop science that contributes to evidence-based decisions that better protect Canada's food, animal and plant resources.

In order to attain a better understanding of the food safety risks that Canadians may be exposed to, the CFIA developed a series of surveys to target and profile commodities in the non-federally registered sector. Foods, such as bakery products, grains, grain products, juices, snack foods, beverages, coffee and tea, meal replacements, spices and seasonings, are subjected to analysis for certain hazards (allergen, chemical residues, contaminants and toxins). The collective results obtained through these Surveys will enable CFIA to:

• enhance capacity to identify risks, to determine their origin, and to reduce and mitigate these risks;
• to provide inspectors with additional tools to their activities, verify compliance, and take enforcement actions;
• to improve consumers' ability to be well-engaged, in order to make informed decisions they must play an active role in the safety of their food;
• to help industry and stakeholders play an active role in the safety of food by improving the Agency's guidance to assist them in implementing effective control systems.

As these data are to be used in health risk assessments, the supplier(s) must meet stringent quality assurance criteria. While, CFIA is continuously maintaining and monitoring these criteria, given the nature of the ever evolving food science and food industry, changes and modification to the list may happen in the upcoming RFSO.

The Supplier will be required to perform commercial laboratory services for the delivery of targeted surveys of allergens, chemical additives and residue contaminants (hazards) in food. The services will be conducted across Canada and be delivered to the National Capital Region (NCR).

The Supplier must collect the sample as defined in the sample plan and provide testing for one or more hazards in accordance with analytical methods and standard operating procedures (SOP). These methods must be accredited by the Standards Council of Canada (SCC) in the Program Specialty Area for Agriculture and Food Products, or under the Canadian Association for Laboratory Accreditation (CALA).

References

SCC https://www.scc.ca/en/search/palcan

CALA http://www.cala.ca

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency intends to issue multiple NISOs for each of 13 Surveys as identified in Annex A, Statement of Work.

If an Offeror is selected for multiple Surveys, only one NISO will be issued to the Offeror to cover all Surveys for which the Offeror has been selected.

Call-ups will be issued as outlined in Part 6, Section A, article 8.1 Method of Allocation.

The initial period of the Standing Offer will be from the date of issuance to March 31, 2022. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency may authorize the use of the Standing Offer beyond its initial period, for three (3) additional one-year periods.

This procurement is subject to the Canadian Free Trade Agreement. This procurement consists of Quality Control, Testing, Inspection and Technical Representative Services which are excluded from the application of the NAFTA as per Annex 1001.1b-2, Class H and is not listed under the WTO-AGP.

The Comprehensive Land Claims Agreements (CLCAs) will not be applicable to this procurement, as no Work will be conducted within a CLCA area. 

The Procurement Strategy for Aboriginal business will not apply to this procurement as the services will not be delivered to or for an Aboriginal population and Canada has elected not to designate the procurement as being restricted exclusively to qualified Aboriginal suppliers.

The requirement will be limited to Canadian goods and/or services.

Offerors must submit a list of names, or other related information as needed, pursuant to section 01, Integrity Provisions – Offer, of 2006 (2019-08-04) Standard Instructions – Request for Standing Offers – Goods or Services – Competitive Requirements.