NSF International was founded in 1944 from the University of Michigan's School of Public Health as the National Sanitation Foundation to standardize sanitation and food safety requirements. The process established to develop NSF International's first standards regarding the sanitation of soda fountain and luncheonette equipment, became the process by which NSF International developed other public health and safety standards. To date, NSF has developed more than 80 public health and safetyAmerican National Standards. As NSF expanded services beyond sanitation and into new international markets, the name was changed to NSF International in 1990. NSF International is an accredited, independent third-party certification body that tests and certifies products to verify they meet these public health and safety standards. Products that meet these standards bear the NSF mark. NSF operates more than of laboratory space and serves companies in more than 150 countries worldwide. Its 1,200-plus staff includes microbiologists, toxicologists, chemists, engineers, food safety specialists, environmental, food scientists and public health professionals.
Programs
The NSF Food Safety Division provides accredited services across all supply chain sectors, from agriculture, produce, processing, distribution and dairy, to seafood, retail and restaurants. Services include Global Food Safety Initiative certification ; Marine Stewardship Council certification; auditing, consulting and technical services; HACCP validation and inspection; and organic and gluten-free certification through QAI. NSF Food Safety also certifies foodservice equipment, nonfood compounds and bottled water/beverages. The NSF Water Division certifies products that come into contact with drinking water, such as plumbing components, water treatment chemicals and drinking water filters, as well as pool and spa equipment. The NSF Health Sciences Division offers training and education, consulting, auditing, good manufacturing practice and good laboratory practice testing, certification, R&D and regulatory guidance for the pharmaceutical, medical device and dietary supplement industries throughout the product lifecycle. It also supplies pharmaceutical secondary reference standards, traceable to United States Pharmacopeia and European Pharmacopoeia standards. The NSF Consumer Products Division tests and certifies consumer products and appliances used in and around the home including home appliances, cookware, bakeware, small kitchen electronics, bottled water and beverages, nutritional and dietary supplements, private label goods and personal care products. NSF Sustainability provides standards development, certification and claims validation for sustainably produced commercial and consumer products such as personal care products, carpet, flooring, fabrics and other building materials; and process verification services such as greenhouse gas verification, environmental footprinting, and environmental management systems certifications. NSF International Strategic Registrations provides management systems certifications to internationally accepted standards for quality assurance and environmental protection for the aerospace, medical and manufacturing industries. NSF Education and Training provides training and education for professionals in the food safety, water, health sciences, consumer product and management systems certification industries.
Laboratories
NSF maintains laboratories in North America, South America, Europe and China. NSF's laboratories are accredited by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the Standards Council of Canada. NSF laboratories are ISO 17025 certified, and provide a wide range of testing, certification and technical services for the home appliances and consumer product industries ; retail food, growers, processors and seafood industries; pipes, plumbing components and treatment chemicals for the water industry; and analytical testing for the supplement and pharmaceutical industry.
Standard development
NSF is accredited by the American National Standards Institute to develop American National Standards. NSF standards are developed, maintained and revised by the committee ballot system, similar to that used by American National Standards Institute and ASTM. The committees consist of representatives of groups affected by the scope of the standard such as industry representatives, public health/regulatory officials, users/consumer representatives and other relevant interest groups. For instance, for Standard 61, Drinking Water Systems Components - Health Effects, the committee consists of manufacturers of plumbing parts, material manufacturers, toxicologists, state regulatory officials, etc. Any updates to standards related to testing requirements are vetted through lab testing, and balloting ensures majority rule.
