Lindenwood University announced Pedestal Foods’ conclusion of the partnership in an email sent out on Monday, April 17.

The university said in an email that its contract with Pedestal will end on Friday, May 5, 2023. Lindenwood is currently going through the selection process of the new food service vendor and is in its final stages.

“The University is in the final stages of a thorough process to identify a new food service vendor, and we will update the campus community when a new partner has been selected,” the university said in an email.

Assistant Vice President of Procurement and Operations Chanda Jackson said the decision to end a contract was made after the university requested Pedestal to complete the Request for Proposal process.

RFP is a process that is usually completed every three to five years by colleges and consists of the university submitting solicitation letters to potential food vendors. Jackson said it has been a while since Lindenwood conducted this process.

“The university encouraged Pedestal to submit an RFP, but after additional consideration, they chose not to pursue this option as part of their business strategy ending the current agreement,” Jackson said.

Lindenwood’s Leadership Team along with President John Porter have approved a task force consisting of a diverse group of campus leaders to participate in the RFP process this year. Chanda said the team submitted their vendor recommendations to Porter a week before the announcement was made.

“Over the past few months, the task force has reviewed vendor documentation, verified university recommendations submitted by the potential vendors, toured university dining facilities, and evaluated multiple vendor presentations,” Jackson said.

Jackson said the university is currently in the contractual review phase with a potential food vendor.

“We have received very competitive and creative RFP documents from nationally recognized food service vendors and are excited about the new opportunities that will be unveiled in the coming weeks,” Jackson said.

More information will be available after Lindenwood makes a final decision on a new food service vendor in the next couple of weeks.