Project Information

Bid Title

RFP 26-19 CWS Regional Sourcing

Issuing Agency

Minneapolis Public Schools

Location

Minnesota

Published Date

Mar 20, 2026

Closing Date

Apr 23, 2026

Government Level

State & Local

Status

Closed

Ref. #

RFP 26-19

Original Source

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Project Description

RFP 26-19 CWS Regional Sourcing

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MPS CWS Regional Sourcing 26-19

Request for Proposal (RFP) for

CWS Regional Sourcing

RFP: 26-19

Minneapolis Public Schools - Special School District No. 1

1250 West Broadway Ave.

Minneapolis, Minnesota 55411-2533

MPS Procurement

Issued: March 19th, 2026

Submissions Due: April 23rd, 2026

NOTICE: Pursuant to section 13.591 subdivision 3(b) of the Minnesota Statutes, after a

government entity has completed negotiating a contract with the selected vendor, all

data in RFP responses are public except for trade secret information as defined in

section 13.37 subdivision 1(b). A statement that submitted data are copyrighted or

otherwise protected does not prevent public access to the data.

1

Minneapolis Public Schools

1250 W. Broadway Ave

Minneapolis, MN 55411

RFX@mpls.k12.mn.us

MPS CWS Regional Sourcing 26-19

TABLE OF CONTENTS

I.

Overview

A. Project Objective

B. Schedule of Proposal

C. Intention to Submit Proposals

D. Submission of Written Questions

E. Changes to the RFP

F. Preparation of Proposal

G. Submission of Proposals

H. Withdrawal of Proposals

I. Evaluation and Selection Process

J. Effective Period of Proposals

K. Bid Reservations

L. Notifications of Unsuccessful Vendors

M. Contract Negotiations

N. Award of Contract

O. Contract Term

P. Disposition of, and Public Access to, Proposals

Q. Cost Incurred in Responding

R. Assignment

S. Causes for Termination

II.

Scope of Services

A. Project Background

B. CWS Regional Sourcing Goals

C. MPS Culinary and Wellness Services Organization

D. General Description of Expected Services

E. Specific Expectation and Components to be Addressed by Response

III.

Response Section - General Business Information

A. General Business Requirements

B. Qualifications and Experience

C. Supplier and Employee Equity & Diversity, Sustainability and Community Engagement

D. Business Ethics

E. Service Level Expectations

F. Fees & Costs

G. Billing and Payment

H. Operational Challenge Responses

IV. Response Section - Project Scope

A. General Information

B. Produce Growers and Suppliers

C. Animal Product Growers and Processors

D. Manufacturers

E. Wrap up to Project Scope Information

V.

2

Appendix Requirements

A. References

B. Pricing Information

C. MPS Reports

Minneapolis Public Schools

1250 W. Broadway Ave

Minneapolis, MN 55411

RFX@mpls.k12.mn.us

MPS CWS Regional Sourcing 26-19

D. Business Specific Reports

E. Service Level Expectations

F. Product specification sheets and other documents

VI. MPS Appendix Documents

1. Intention to Submit a Proposal

2. Organization Information Cover Sheet

3. Product information and Specifications

4. Response Format Guidelines and Product Submission Template

5. Evaluation Matrix

6. MPS Sample Contract

3

Minneapolis Public Schools

1250 W. Broadway Ave

Minneapolis, MN 55411

RFX@mpls.k12.mn.us

MPS CWS Regional Sourcing 26-19

SECTION I: OVERVIEW

A. Project Objective

Minneapolis Public Schools (MPS) is seeking proposals from organizations and individuals wishing

to provide CWS Regional Sourcing food products.

Minneapolis Public Schools or Special School District Number 1 (SSD #1) is a school district that is

coterminous with the City of Minneapolis, Minnesota. With authority granted by the state

legislature, the school board makes policy, selects the superintendent, and oversees the district's

budget, curriculum, personnel, and facilities. Students speak ninety different languages at home

and most school communications are printed in English, Hmong, Spanish, and Somali. The District

covers over 70 school programs at 65 sites, with approximately 28,500 students and 3,200

teaching staff.

The District intends to select multiple organizations to provide the necessary Regional Sourcing

food products. To facilitate the submission and evaluation of proposals, this proposal provides

additional background information regarding MPS that will be relevant to the proposal of the

Regional Sourcing food products.

RFP Primary Objective 1: Gain a thorough understanding of the product capability in order to

select, implement and operate Regional Sourcing food products that will meet the needs of the

district for the next 1 to 3 years.

RFP Primary Objective 2: Gain a thorough understanding of the Regional Sourcing food products

total proposed costs. Including but not limited to: Goods costs, delivery costs, and vendor

capabilities

B. Schedule of Proposal

1. Issue RFP:

2. Intention to Submit:

3. Written Questions Due:

4. Responses to Questions:

5. Proposals Due:

6. Award bid – Notification:

7. District Approval

8. Implementation:

March 19th, 2026

April 9th, 2026

April 9th, 2026

April 10th, 2026

April 23rd, 2026, 2 pm CST

May 1st, 2026

June 9th, 2026

July 1st, 2026

C. Mandatory Intention to Submit Proposals

In order for your organization to receive updates to this Request for Proposal, including

responses to submitted questions from all participating firms, please complete Appendix 1:

Intention to Submit a Proposal by April 9th, 2026. This document must be emailed to

RFX@mpls.k12.mn.us. This will allow the District to provide timely information to interested

parties. This document is a mandatory document, if this is not submitted in person or by email by

April 9th, 2026; the organization will not be able to participate in CWS Regional Sourcing RFP 26-

19.

D. Submission of Written Questions

All questions about the RFP shall be submitted by e-mail by 4:00 p.m. Central Standard Time on

or before April 9th, 2026 to: RFX@mpls.k12.mn.us. The District will provide written responses

to questions from prospective Proposers no later than April 10th, 2026 EOD. After April 9th,

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Minneapolis Public Schools

1250 W. Broadway Ave

Minneapolis, MN 55411

RFX@mpls.k12.mn.us

MPS CWS Regional Sourcing 26-19

2026, no questions or inquiries will be allowed. Written responses will be posted to the same

online location as the RFP.

E. Changes to the RFP

Vendors who are registered with MPS for this RFP will be notified by email of any changes in the

specifications contained in this RFP. If any changes are issued to this RFP, a good faith attempt

will be made to deliver the additional information to those persons or firms who, according to

the records of MPS, have previously received a copy of and are registered (via the Intent to

Submit form) with the District for this RFP.

F. Preparation of Proposal

1. Careful attention must be paid to all requested items contained in this Request for Proposal.

Please read the entire package before bidding. Each proposal shall be prepared simply and

economically avoiding the use of elaborate promotional materials beyond what is sufficient

to provide a complete, accurate, and reliable presentation.

2. For ease of review, the proposals must follow the outline in Section III and IV of this request

for proposal. Each response should be clearly numbered and the full question listed.

3. Each page of the proposal must be sequentially numbered and include the proposing

organization’s name.

4. Proposal must be double-spaced, with at least than one-inch margins. Font must be at least

12-point. Any RFP submitted that is not double-spaced, uses margins less than 1-inch, and

smaller than 12-point font will not be reviewed. There will be no exceptions.

5. Each response to questions in Section III and IV of the proposal must be appropriately

labeled (e.g., Section III: General Business Questions, A. General Business Requirements,

Question #1; etc.).

6. The proposal narrative for Section III-IV may not exceed 20 pages total, not including

appendices. Proposals exceeding the 20 pages in Section III-IV will not be reviewed. There

will be no exceptions.

7. Some questions in this proposal will require organizations to submit documents as an

Appendix. Applicants may wish to submit additional supplemental materials to support

responses to questions in Section III and IV. If an applicant intends to include supplemental

materials with responses to questions in Sections III and IV of the proposal, separate

appendices for each part must be developed. Each appendix should be clearly labeled (e.g.,

Appendix A: References, etc.).

8. All appendix materials (e.g., sample letters, curricula, lesson plans, progress reports,

academic effectiveness data, etc.) must be labeled with the name of the organization and

reference the appropriate section and question (e.g., Section C: Description of Expected

Services 1a). Although there is no page limitation for the Appendix, the appendix should

not be excessive in length. Applicants should also ensure the appendix items are

appropriately described and referenced in the narrative section of the proposal.

9. The proposal must be submitted in the appropriate order. Each part of the proposal should

be separated with a section divider page listing the title of the next part of the proposal that

is enclosed. All proposals should follow the order below:

a. Organization Information Cover Page (Provided in attached Appendix 2)

b. Table of Contents

c. Section III- General Business Information

d. Section IV- Project Scope

e. Appendix Materials

10. Additional circumstances that may lead to proposal not being reviewed and/or selected:

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Minneapolis Public Schools

1250 W. Broadway Ave

Minneapolis, MN 55411

RFX@mpls.k12.mn.us

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