Unprocessed Fruit and Vegetable Pilot:

Eligible Vendor Requirements

To be considered an eligible vendor under the USDA Pilot Project for the Procurement of Unprocessed Fruits 

and Vegetables, the following requirements must be met. The documents listed below must be provided 

to the USDA, Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), Commodity Procurement Program (AMS-CPP) for review 

and approval before being granted eligible vendorstatus.

1. Application Form (AttachmentA).

2. Self-Certification Form (AttachmentB).

3. Domestic Origin Certification Form (Attachment C). All products covered by this pilot program must be 

of domestic origin.

4. List of Suppliers and Subcontractors (AttachmentD).

5. Product Segregation Plan, if handling non-domesticproduct.

6. Food Safety Audit Certification. Either a USDA-AMS Specialty Crops Inspection Division or Global Food 

Safety Initiative (GFSI) recognized audit for the scope(s) applicable to the operation/facility being 

audited: Good Agricultural Practices (GAP), Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP), Hazard Analysis 

Critical Control Point (HACCP), and FoodDefense.

7. List of Suppliers and Subcontractors. Include foreach:

- Food Safety AuditCertification

- Product(s)supplied

8. If supplying fresh-cut fruits and/or vegetables a Food Safety Plan must be maintained and include:

- Verification plan for environmental monitoring and testing for Listeria* and Salmonella

- Verification plan for end product (finished packaged product) microbiological testing for Total 

Aerobic Plate Count (TPC) and E.coliO157:H7

- Verification testing plan for antioxidant solution (if used) for TPC, E.coli O157:H7 and Listeria*

- Food Safety Plan must also include the microbiological test method used for each of the 

above requirements

*Listeria – Refer to FDA: Control of Listeria monocytogenes in Ready-To-Eat Foods: Guidance for Industry Draft

January 2017 (or most current FDA guidance)

Vendors can seek guidance for analytical testing methods from FDA’s Bacteriological Analytical Manual (BAM) at 

the following links: https://www.fda.gov/Food/FoodScienceResearch/LaboratoryMethods/ucm2006949.htm

and https://www.fda.gov/downloads/Food/FoodScienceResearch/LaboratoryMethods/UCM588921.pdf

All application forms and supporting documentation shall be submitted electronically to 

scpilotproject@usda.gov. In addition to the application forms, a WBSCM Vendor Registration Form must be 

submitted to scpilotproject@usda.gov. All eligible vendors shall also be registered in the System for Award 

Management (SAM), which requires a DUNS number.

In order to receive payment for delivered unprocessed fruits and vegetables, an approved vendor must submit 

the Vendor/SDA Reporting Template (in Microsoft Excel format) and supporting documentation (SDA signature 

and proof of delivery) to AMS invoicing system, WBSCM.

Vendors with eligible status may be subject to an audit by USDA, AMS personnel to confirm all above 

requirements are in place.
The Pilot Project for the Procurement of Unprocessed Fruits and Vegetables

Eligible Vendor Requirements

March 2018

Vendor Application Documentation Requirements

Grower

Distributor/Wholesaler/Food Hub 

Does Repack or Otherwise Handle 

Fresh Produce

Distributor/Wholesaler/Food Hub 

Does NOT Repack or Otherwise 

Handle Fresh Produce

Processor 

(Dried or Frozen) Fresh-Cut

WBSCM Vendor Registration Form X X X X X

Application Form (Attachment A) X X X X X

Self-Certification Form (Attachment B) X X X X X

Domestic Origin Certification Form (Attachment C) 

All products for this program must be grown and 

produced in the U.S.

X X X X X

List of Suppliers and Subcontractors (Attachment D)

Include for each , as appropriate:

- Food Safety Audit Certification (Except for Dried or 

Frozen Processors).

- Product(s) supplied

X X X X

Product Segregation Plan, If also handling nondomestic product

X X X X

Food Safety Audit Certification

(USDA or Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI 

Recognized GAP, GMP, and HACCP Audit 

Certifications)

Good 

Agricultural 

Practices 

(GAP) or 

USDA

Harmonized 

GAP

Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) 

or USDA Good Handling Practices 

(GHP), Plant Survey or Plant Systems 

Audit

must include 

Food Defense

Signed statement certifying that 

vendor meets GHP/GMP, and has 

been audited (audit can be other 

than USDA or GFSI recognized) 

Must have Food Defense Audit 

benchmarked by GFSI or USDA

Good 

Manufacturing 

Practices (GMP) or 

USDA Plant Survey 

or Plant Systems 

Audit must include 

Food Defense

Good 

Manufacturing 

Practices (GMP) or 

USDA Qualified 

Through 

Verification (QTV) 

must include

Food Defense

Food Safety/Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point 

(HACCP) Plan for Fresh-cut Products must include all 

of the Food Safety and Verification plan 

requirements outlined in item number eight above.

X
The Pilot Project for the Procurement of Unprocessed Fruits and Vegetables

Eligible Vendor Requirements

March 2018

Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) Recognized GAP, GMP and HACCP Audit Certifications

Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point 

(HACCP)

Global GAP (All Farm Base, Crops Base, 

Fruits & Vegetables) X X

Primus GFS GAP Primus GFS GMP

(Module FSMS includes food defense)

Primus GFS HACCP

(Module FSMS includes food defense)

SQF-GAP Farming of Plant Products 

(Module 2, 7

Module 2 includes food defense)

SQF-GMP Wholesale & Distribution 

(Module 2, 12

Module 2 includes food defense)

SQF- Level 2 or 3

GMP-Processing of Food Products 

(Module 2, 11

Module 2 includes food defense)

X

SQF-GMP Preprocessing of Plant Products 

Produce Pack house) (Module 2, 10 

Module 2 includes food defense)

FSSC 22000 (includes GMP)

X

SQF- GMP-Processing of Food Products 

(Module 2, 11

Module 2 includes food defense)

X