(a) Agencies must not require virgin material or supplies composed of or manufactured using virgin material unless compelled by law or regulation or unless virgin material is vital for safety or meeting performance requirements of the contract.
(b)
(1) When acquiring other than commercial items, agencies must require offerors to identify used, reconditioned, or remanufactured supplies, or unused former Government surplus property, proposed for use under the contract. Such supplies or property may not be used in contract performance unless authorized by the contracting officer.
(2) When acquiring commercial items, the contracting officer must consider the customary practices in the industry for the item being acquired. The contracting officer may require offerors to provide information on used, reconditioned, or remanufactured supplies, or unused former Government surplus property, proposed for use under the contract. The request for such information must be included in the solicitation, and to the maximum extent practicable must be limited to information or standards consistent with normal commercial practices.
(c)
(1) When the contracting officer needs additional information to determine whether supplies meet minimum recovered material or biobased standards stated in the solicitation, the contracting officer may require offerors to submit additional information on the recycled or biobased content or related standards. The request for the information must be included in the solicitation. When acquiring commercial items, limit the information to the maximum extent practicable to that available under normal commercial practices.
(2) For biobased products, the contracting officer may require vendors to provide information on life cycle costs and environmental and health benefits in accordance with 7 CFR 2902.8.
