Notice Information
Notice Title
Purchase of International Specialist Courier Services for APHA
Notice Description
Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) require a specialist courier supplier to manage the secure, time-critical collection and international delivery of approximately 2,000 consignments per year. While these volumes are indicative and cannot be guaranteed, the consignments include high-risk materials classified as Category A (UN2814 & UN2900) and Category B (UN3373), which must be transported both within the UK (including Northern Ireland) and globally, covering Europe, Non-EU countries, and other international destinations. Due to the specialist nature of the consignments, the suppliers must hold appropriate licenses for the transportation of infectious substances, manage chilled and dry ice shipments, provide import services, and navigate complex customs clearance procedures.
Lot Information
Lot 1
Renewal: Extensions will be subject to service demand and satisfactory contract performance.
Planning Information
Defra Group Commercial on behalf of Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) intends to publish a tender opportunity for the provision of International Specialist Courier service, tentatively scheduled for August 2025. The successful supplier(s) will be required to collect and deliver Category A (UN2814 & UN2900) and/or Category B (UN3373) consignments to and from UK addresses and deliver them internationally, including to Northern Ireland, Europe, Non-EU countries, and worldwide destinations. Given the specialist nature of these consignments, suppliers must hold the appropriate licenses for transporting biological substances under chilled conditions using dry ice. Additionally, suppliers will need to provide import services and manage complex customs clearance process. The tender opportunity is expected to be divided into 2 lots: Lot 1 - Transportation of Category A samples Lot 2 - Transportation of Category B samples Suppliers will have the option to bid for one or both lots. Please note that this approach may be subject to change based on the outcome of our supplier engagement. An initial market engagement exercise took place in November 2024. This notice now serves to resume the procurement process ahead of the forthcoming tender. We are considering holding a virtual supplier engagement event, provisionally scheduled for 16th July 2025 via Microsoft Teams. This session will provide an overview of our requirements and invite supplier feedback. A Q&A session will follow, giving participants the opportunity to raise questions which will be addressed by our team. If your organisation is interested in this upcoming opportunity, please register your interest by emailing angelica.ho@defra.gov.uk. In your response, kindly confirm the following: 1) Whether your organisation intends to submit a tender. 2) Whether you would like to attend the supplier engagement event, if so, please provide the names and email addresses of the proposed attendees. We would appreciate receiving all expressions of interest by 12pm on 14th July 2025. Thank you for your time and interest. We look forward to hearing from you.
Notice Details
Publication & Lifecycle
- Open Contracting ID
- ocds-h6vhtk-054f3f
- Publication Source
- Find A Tender Service
- Latest Notice
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/064911-2025
- Current Stage
- Tender
- All Stages
- Planning, Tender
Procurement Classification
- Notice Type
- UK4 - Tender Notice
- Procurement Type
- Standard
- Procurement Category
- Services
- Procurement Method
- Open
- Procurement Method Details
- Competitive flexible procedure
- Tender Suitability
- SME, VCSE
- Awardee Scale
- Not specified
Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)
- CPV Divisions
60 - Transport services (excl. Waste transport)
64 - Postal and telecommunications services
-
- CPV Codes
60000000 - Transport services (excl. Waste transport)
60161000 - Parcel transport services
60400000 - Air transport services
60411000 - Scheduled airmail transport services
60421000 - Non-scheduled airmail transport services
64100000 - Post and courier services
64110000 - Postal services
64113000 - Postal services related to parcels
64120000 - Courier services
64121000 - Multi-modal courier services
64121100 - Mail delivery services
64121200 - Parcel delivery services
Notice Value(s)
- Tender Value
- £955,000 £500K-£1M
- Lots Value
- £955,000 £500K-£1M
- Awards Value
- Not specified
- Contracts Value
- Not specified
Notice Dates
- Publication Date
- 13 Oct 20254 months ago
- Submission Deadline
- 14 Nov 2025Expired
- Future Notice Date
- 18 Aug 2025Expired
- Award Date
- Not specified
- Contract Period
- 1 Feb 2026 - 31 Mar 2028 2-3 years
- Recurrence
- 2029-09-01
Notice Status
- Tender Status
- Active
- Lots Status
- Active
- Awards Status
- Not Specified
- Contracts Status
- Not Specified
Buyer & Supplier
Contracting Authority (Buyer)
- Main Buyer
- ANIMAL AND PLANT HEALTH AGENCY
- Additional Buyers
- Contact Name
- Not specified
- Contact Email
- network.procurement@defra.gov.uk
- Contact Phone
- Not specified
Buyer Location
- Locality
- LONDON
- Postcode
- SW1P 4DF
- Post Town
- South West London
- Country
- England
-
- Major Region (ITL 1)
- TLI London
- Basic Region (ITL 2)
- TLI3 Inner London - West
- Small Region (ITL 3)
- TLI35 Westminster and City of London
- Delivery Location
- Not specified
-
- Local Authority
- Westminster
- Electoral Ward
- St James's
- Westminster Constituency
- Cities of London and Westminster
Further Information
Notice Documents
-
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/064911-2025
13th October 2025 - Tender notice on Find a Tender -
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/033409-2025
18th June 2025 - Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender
Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)
View full OCDS Record for this contracting process
The Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS) is a framework designed to increase transparency and access to public procurement data in the public sector. It is widely used by governments and organisations worldwide to report on procurement processes and contracts.
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