Nate Bruce, Farm Business Management Specialist, nsbruce@udel.edu
Produce growers looking for new markets can sell to the troops and their families. There are two avenues to reach this market:
- Selling to military base commissaries: Defense Commissary Agency (DeCA)
- Selling to troop dining facilities (DFAC): Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) Troop Support Subsistence
DeCA operates about 240 commissaries across the globe. Commissaries not only sell groceries, but also household goods to military personal. DLA provides fresh fruit and vegetables to troop dining facilities and other non-Department of Defense customers. There are several levels of suppliers and vendors that supply both DeCA and DLA through governmental contracts. Prime vendors typically are the contract holders while subcontractors typically supply fresh produce to the prime vendors.
To access this market, become familiar with the both the DeCA website and the DLA webpages:
- DeCA: https://www.commissaries.com/our-agency/business-with-deca/small-business
- DLA: https://www.dla.mil/TroopSupport/Subsistence/Produce
The University of Delaware PTAC (Procurement Technical Center) offers no-cost training, counseling, and advising to clients on contracting to the Federal government.
For more information on this unique marketing opportunity, check out the associated PDF slides.