Berry Amendment Requires Domestic Production for Covered DoD Purchases

The Berry Amendment, codified at 10 U.S.C. 4862, restricts the Department of Defense (DoD) from using its funds to procure specified products that were not grown, reprocessed, reused, or produced in the United States. The covered categories include food; clothing and its materials and components; tents, structural components, tarpaulins, and covers; specified natural- and synthetic-fiber products; hand or measuring tools; stainless steel flatware and dinnerware; and U.S. flags. The law applies to DoD purchases, including commercial products, and the definition of the United States includes U.S. possessions. It does not generally regulate a private laboratory’s ordinary purchases outside DoD procurement.

For contractors, the central compliance issue is the breadth of the domestic-origin test. The source explains that the entire production process for a covered product must be performed in the United States, encompassing raw materials, components, and final assembly or production. Domestic sewing, finishing, or assembly alone may not satisfy the requirement if covered fabric, fibers, or components originated abroad. This makes supplier visibility and traceable documentation important well before proposal submission, particularly for products that combine multiple materials or rely on upstream subcontractors.

DoD implements the statute through the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) at 225.7002. The DFARS exceptions at 225.7002-2 form part of the contracting officer’s practical review, while the source highlights distinct $150,000 statutory and $200,000 DFARS thresholds. Those figures should not be treated as interchangeable: offerors need to review the solicitation, the applicable statutory and regulatory provisions, and any stated exception, and should seek clarification from the contracting officer where the governing rule is uncertain. The guidance also notes that whether an individual product falls within a statutory category can require a case-specific determination.

The Berry Amendment is more demanding in its domestic-content approach than the Buy American Act, according to the source’s summary of Congressional Research Service analysis. The Berry framework focuses on the entire production process for covered DoD items, while the Buy American Act applies to most procurement at other federal agencies and uses a different content test. This distinction matters to companies that sell similar goods across federal markets: a product or sourcing model acceptable under one regime may not meet Berry requirements for a DoD solicitation. Procurement, supply-chain, and contracts teams should therefore screen solicitations by agency, product category, threshold, and exception rather than rely on a general “domestic preference” assessment.

• Legal basis: The Berry Amendment is codified at 10 U.S.C. 4862 and restricts use of DoD funds for noncompliant covered items.
• Covered categories: Food; clothing and related materials or components; tents, structural components, tarpaulins and covers; specified fiber and textile products; hand or measuring tools; stainless steel flatware and dinnerware; and U.S. flags.
• Origin test: Contractors should be prepared to document U.S. origin across raw materials, components, and final production—not merely final assembly.
• Threshold distinction: The source identifies a $150,000 statutory threshold and a $200,000 DFARS threshold; confirm which applies to the solicitation and relevant exception.
• Implementation: DoD addresses the requirements through DFARS 225.7002, with exceptions listed at DFARS 225.7002-2.
• Product review: Coverage may be case-specific; engage the contracting officer when a product’s classification or the applicable exception is uncertain.
• Commercial products: The source states that the statute applies to commercial products, notwithstanding 41 U.S.C. 1906.
• Geographic scope: The statute’s definition of the United States includes U.S. possessions.
• Time-sensitive category: Stainless steel flatware and dinnerware is described as effective January 1, 2026, and scheduled for repeal on January 1, 2029.
• Bid preparation: Build supplier-origin records and solicitation screening into proposal and procurement workflows; do not assume that compliance with the Buy American Act establishes Berry compliance.