RFP- Assessing the Potential of digital Aflatoxin Risk Scoring for fintech, and Market Systems

Apply by: 19 Aug 2026

INTERNATIONAL MAIZE AND WHEAT IMPROVEMENT CENTRE (CIMMYT INDIA)

REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL (RFP)

[RFQ: 2026/08/01]

12 th August 2026

Subject: Invitation to Submit Proposal – Assessing the Potential of digital Aflatoxin Risk Scoring for fintech, and Market Systems

Dear Sir/Madam,

CIMMYT India invites your company to participate in a competitive selection process for the provision of a brief description of goods and services in accordance with the technical specifications and requirements established by the Procurement Unit.

This RFP is issued to ensure transparency, fairness, and equal opportunity in the selection of suppliers, following CIMMYT’s procurement principles of accountability, value for money, competition, integrity, and ethical conduct.

1. Submission Requirements

To be considered for this process, vendors must submit the following:

Official Quotation, duly signed and stamped on company letterhead in PDF, including:

Delivery leads time and quotation validity period

Full compliance with the technical specifications provided by CIMMYT Procurement (SoW is given at Annex I)

Prices must be quoted in INR (or USD as applicable) and should include all applicable taxes, duties, transportation, and insurance

costs required for full delivery of goods or services to CIMMYT.

Corporate Documentation (for Vendor Onboarding):

Copy of PAN

Copy of GSTIN

Copy of Cancelled Cheque/ Bank Statement

Certificate of Incorporation

Address of the company alongwith address proof

Contact person name and contact details

PoA in favor of signatory from company side

Valid Public Liability Insurance Policy ( mandatory requirement ):

Vendors must maintain a valid Public Liability Insurance policy throughout the entire period of performance, from acceptance of the Purchase Order until full delivery and acceptance of goods or services by CIMMYT. Proof of insurance must be provided upon request.

2. Vendor Onboarding and Due Diligence

As part of the vendor registration and onboarding process, CIMMYT will conduct an internal due diligence review to verify:

Legal registration and ownership structure

Financial standing and sanction screening (UN, World Bank, and other international databases)

Ethical, environmental, and social compliance track record

The outcome of this review may affect the eligibility of the vendor and could result in disqualification from this or future procurement opportunities if compliance requirements are not met.

As a registered and onboarded vendor of CIMMYT, you are not required to resubmit corporate or compliance documentation already verified. However, participation in this RFP requires submission of a quotation in compliance with technical specifications, pricing, delivery timelines, and confirmation of ongoing compliance with CIMMYT’s Ethical Standards and for Indian Vendors the SAT Compliance Opinionwith positive opinion must be required yearly.

3. Submission Details

All documents must be submitted electronically to:

[contact details removed] by submission deadline: 19 th August 2026, 5:00PM GMT+5.30.

Late or incomplete submissions will not be considered.

4. Evaluation Criteria

Evaluation will be conducted based on:

Technical experience and organizational capacity

Compliance with technical specifications

Prior experience with AI and food quality assessment

Quality and reliability of proposed technical proposition

Financial competitiveness and cost-effectiveness of the financial proposal

Delivery schedule

Vendor qualifications and compliance with documentation requirements

5. Important Notes

The submission of a quotation does not guarantee a contract award.

CIMMYT reserves the right to accept or reject any quotation or all quotations without obligation to provide justification.

Any attempt to influence the evaluation process will result in immediate disqualification.

Failure to comply with any requirement stated in this RFQ, including maintenance of insurance coverage, timely delivery, or adherence to technical and ethical standards, may result in disqualification or rejection of the quotation.

Attached to this RFQ request you can see the technical details of the request, Legal T&C applicable to all POs and the drafts of the contracts for goods or services that will be used if required.

Annex I

Terms of Reference (ToR)

Assessing the Potential of digital Aflatoxin Risk Scoring for fintech, and Market Systems

Background

The International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) is a cutting-edge, non-profit international organization committed to addressing tomorrow’s challenges today. As a core CGIAR Research Center and part of a global research partnership working toward a food-secure future, CIMMYT is dedicated to reducing poverty, enhancing food and nutrition security, and improving the sustainable management of natural resources.

Smallholder farmers in many low- and middle-income countries continue to face weak incentives to invest in improved grain storage and quality management. Emerging business models have demonstrated the potential to address these constraints by integrating AI-based grain quality assessment, digital warehouse receipt systems, grain-backed financing (fintech), and digital trading platforms.

Food safety—particularly contamination by aflatoxins and other mycotoxins—remains a major constraint to market competitiveness, export opportunities, and public health. Conventional laboratory testing provides definitive evidence of contamination but is costly and cannot be applied practically to every grain lot. Recent advances in artificial intelligence offer an opportunity to complement laboratory testing by combining operational data collected throughout the grain value chainand other relevant variables—to generate probabilistic mycotoxin risk scores for individual grain lots.

CIMMYT is seeking qualified agri-tech companies in India to undertake a 3 months study to develop and validate a replicable Digital Grain Quality Intelligence framework. The study will explore how AI-based grain quality assessment and probabilistic mycotoxin risk prediction can be integrated with digital warehouse receipt systems, grain-backed financing (fintech), and digital trading platforms to strengthen grain quality management and enable quality-based market incentives. The framework should identify the technical, operational, and institutional components required for implementation and provide guidance for adaptation across different country contexts.

Objective

The selected company will be responsible for achieving the following objectives:

Assess the feasibility of developing an AI-enabled Digital Grain Quality Intelligence framework for estimating probabilistic mycotoxin risk scores

Explain how Digital Grain Quality Intelligence, including mycotoxin risk scores, could be integrated into digital warehouse receipt systems, grain-backed financing, grain grading, procurement decisions, and digital market platforms to strengthen incentives for grain quality management and quality-based price differentiation.

Develop a replicable implementation framework that outlines the technical, data, operational, and institutional requirements for adapting AI-enabled Digital Grain Quality Intelligence across maize value chains in different country contexts, with an initial focus on Mexico.

Scope of work

The selected company will undertake a study to develop a replicable framework for AI-enabled Digital Grain Quality Intelligence that estimates probabilistic food safety risk scores for maize grain lots and assesses its potential integration into digital grain banking, financing, and market systems. The work will include the following tasks.

Design and development:

Task 1: Development of a Digital Food Safety Risk Scoring Framework

The company will assess the feasibility of developing an AI-enabled framework for estimating probabilistic mycotoxin risk scor