Official UK procurement notice
Metagenomic Profiling of Gut Microbiome IID3: New Perspectives Infectious Intestinal Disease
Authority: The Food Standards Agency (Central government)
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionThe Food Standards Agency (FSA) is an independent Government department working across England, Wales and Northern Ireland to protect public health and consumers wider interest in food. We make sure food is safe and what it says it is.
The FSA are looking to appoint a supplier to deliver a research project to undertake metagenomic and metatranscriptomic analyses of faecal samples generated as part of The Third Study of Infectious Intestinal Disease (IID3), alongside other relevant datasets. The study aims to improve our understanding of the causes of IID and to characterise the prevalence and diversity of antimicrobial resistance and virulence genes in IID samples.
The contract will run for a period of 24 months, with an optional 6-month extension period if required. The maximum budget assigned for this project is £600,000, excluding VAT.
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · no lot value publishedProcedure terms & legal framework
From the official record- Procedure method
- Direct award
- Legal basis
- UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
- Notice status
- Awarded without competition
- Procurement threshold
- Unspecified in notice
- Regulatory regime
- Standard
- Commercial structure
- Stand-alone contract (no framework)
- Competition type
- Direct award (no call for competition)
- GPA / WTO covered
- Unspecified in notice
- Recurring procurement
- Unspecified in notice
- First published
- 1 Oct 2026, 17:16 BST
- Last source update
- 1 Oct 2026, 17:24 BST
- Authority reference
C459301- FTS notice number
2026/S 000-093049- Latest notice
- Contract award notice (UK6)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-077f18Find a Tender
- Why no open competition
- Single Suppliers Technical Reasons
- Published justification
A Direct Award is justified for this procurement based on the conditions permitted under the Procurement Act 2023, specifically the Schedule 5 Sch. 5 para 6 “technical reasons / no reasonable alternative supplier” and “compatibility / additional services from existing supplier” justifications.
- Risks
Risks associated with a scientific services project of this nature may include (but not limited to) delays in project delivery, budgetary pressures, changes in scope or requirements, difficulties in obtaining representative samples, sampling plan amendments, sample quality or availability issues, laboratory capacity constraints, analytical method development and validation challenges, equipment failure, data quality concerns, regulatory or legislative changes, stakeholder availability, and delays in the provision of information, materials or approvals. There is also a risk that research findings or analytical results may not generate the expected outcomes, requiring additional investigation, testing, or revisions to the proposed approach. Suppliers will be expected to identify, manage and mitigate such risks throughout the contract lifecycle to ensure delivery of the agreed objectives, timelines and outputs.
How it was run
Official notice- Submission deadline
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Timeline
1 Oct 2026 → 13 Oct 2026 · 2 dates- Notice published21 days ago1 Oct 2026, 17:24 BST
- Standstill ends9 days ago13 Oct 2026, 23:59 BST
Notice history
3 events · 2 releases on Find a Tender · since 1 Oct 2026- Transparency notice published1 Oct 2026, 17:16 BSTUK5
- Contract award notice published1 Oct 2026, 17:24 BSTUK6
- Contract signature expected16 Oct 2026, 23:59 BSTscheduled
Commercial outcome & contract awards
Published awards, contracts and bid statistics, not a forecast| Awarded to | Value | Date | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| University of LiverpoolVCSE19 Oct 2026 – 19 Oct 2028 · up to 18 Apr 2029Extensions: 6 month optional extension | £599,689 | 1 Oct 2026standstill to 13 Oct 2026 | Standstill |
Contracting authority & participating public bodies
Bidders & participating suppliers
1 commercial party on the notice- University of LiverpoolAwarded supplier
Official documents & specifications (2)
Official links; attachments are not copiedNotices published for this procedure
- Contract award notice Contract award notice on Find a Tender
- Transparency notice Transparency notice on Find a Tender