Under Contract

• The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), which is housed within the National Institutes of Health, awarded a $68.8 million contract to the University of Mississippi to perform marijuana-based research. Researchers must “cultivate and harvest, process, analyze… cannabis (marijuana)” and extract some of the active ingredients within the drug — delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD), among other cannabinoids. From there, the contract involves learning how to grow custom cannabis plants with varying levels of THC and CBD. The university must also “supply cannabis, cannabis extract … and marijuana cigarettes to research investigators and/or to the NIDA Drug Supply program upon NIDA authorization.” To be eligible for the contract, bidders have to obtain special certification from the Drug Enforcement Administration. The contractor must have video monitoring of its outdoor facility, which must be about 12 acres, in addition to a large indoor growing location that has “controls for light intensity, photo cycles, temperature, humidity, and carbon dioxide concentration.”

• The State Department is spending $1.9 million on gardening and groundskeeping services for the U.S. Embassy in Seoul, South Korea. The contract, which could last multiple years, has been awarded to Seoul-based company Sung Hoo C&G Co. Ltd. The company is responsible for the “maintenance and appearance of the grass, shrubbery, garden areas, trees, flowers, and related landscape elements of the U.S. Mission residential and non-residential properties, especially those with representational responsibilities,” contract documents say. “The Government will measure the Contractor’s work by the appearance of the landscape covered by this contract.” The areas specifically covered by the contract include the ambassador’s residence and the deputy chief mission’s residence, Yongsan Embassy housing and Marine housing on Yongsan Garrison, the headquarters for U.S. military presence in South Korea. The gardening services will also extend to the chancery and embassy annex. 

• The Agricultural Research Service, within the U.S Department of Agriculture, awarded a $358,202 contract to the University of Nebraska for male calves to be used in research. No further details are provided in the contract documents.  

Contract information compiled from General Services Administration data and government press releases. Send announcements about government contracts to mwilson@digital-staging.thehill.com.