
BioPreferred Procurement: The Complete Federal Buyer's Guide
The USDA BioPreferred Program requires federal agencies to purchase biobased products in 139 designated categories. Most COs do not know which of their purchases are covered. Here is the practical framework for compliance.
The BioPreferred mandate is not a guideline. It is a statutory requirement under Section 9002 of the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act, implemented through FAR 23.103. Every federal agency and every contractor operating a federal facility must give preference to biobased products in 139 USDA-designated categories.
The compliance gap is enormous. A 2024 GAO review found that fewer than 40% of federal purchase actions in designated categories included biobased alternatives. That is not noncompliance by intent. Most contracting officers and GPC cardholders do not know which products on their standing orders fall under the mandate. The catalog they order from does not flag BioPreferred categories. The compliance check happens at audit time, not at purchase time.
For COs managing facility procurement, the question is not whether the mandate applies. It does. The question is how to comply without adding hours to every purchase action.

