NSF International, founded in 1944 as the National Sanitation Foundation, is known for the development of standards, product testing and certification services in the areas of public health, safety and protection of the environment. The following timeline takes you through NSF's history, step by step:
- 1944 - Walter Snyder, Henry Vaughan and Nathan Sinai found the National Sanitation Foundation (NSF) in the School of Public Health, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan Health (NSF is now an independent, not-for-profit organization)
- 1952 - The National Sanitation Foundation Testing Laboratory (NSFTL) is chartered and the Food Equipment Program starts. In addition, NSF establishes the Council of Public Health Consultants
- 1952 - First food equipment standards introduced (NSF standards 1 and 2)
- 1960 – Pool, Spa, and Hot Tub Products Certification Program starts
- 1963 - NSF Headquarters moves to West Stadium in Ann Arbor; opens regional offices
- 1965 - Plastics Piping and Wastewater Treatment Programs start
- 1967 – NSF Testing Laboratories changes to a not-for-profit corporation
- 1972 – NSF World headquarters and principal laboratories moved to Plymouth Road location (Ann Arbor)
- 1976 - Biosafety Cabinetry Program starts with an award from the National Institutes of Health
- 1980 - NSF International creates the water treatment and distribution systems program to assist the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's efforts to improve drinking water standards. A majority of states now require drinking water products, such as plastic, plumbing and water filters, be certified to NSF standards
- 1984 - Bottled Water Program starts. Health Advisory Board is established
- 1985 - Drinking Water Additives Program starts with a cooperative agreement from the US EPA
- 1985 - NSF International opens European headquarters in Brussels, Belgium
- 1987 - NSF laboratory opens in Sacramento, California
- 1990 - NSF and NSF Testing Laboratories merge to form NSF International
- 1991 - NSF receives accreditation by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) for its product certification programs. NSF establishes networking agreements with KIWA (The Netherlands), JIA (Japan and Korea) and Jenny Hung (Taiwan, R.O.C.). ISO 9000 program starts
- 1993 - NSF receives accreditation from Netherlands-based Raad voor Accreditatie (RvA)
- 1994 - NSF establishes a networking agreement with IMTA (Mexico)
- 1996 - NSF-ISR is established as a wholly-owned subsidiary of NSF International
- 1996 - NSF establishes a joint certification agreement with the Canadian Standards Association (CSA)
- 1996 - NSF is selected as a Collaborating Centre on Drinking Water Safety and Treatment by the World Health Organization (WHO). This designation was renewed in 2009
- 1997 - NSF is selected as a Collaborating Centre on Food Safety by the World Health Organization (WHO)
- 1999 - The Center for Public Health Education at NSF International, a new division of NSF, is founded
- 1999 - The Toxicology Group, LLC, a wholly-owned company, is founded
- 1999 - NSF establishes a partnership with WRc in London
- 1999 - NSF International moves to new world headquarters on Dixboro Road in Ann Arbor, Michigan
- 2000 - Nairobi office moves to Cairo, Egypt
- 2001 - NSF acquires Cook & Thurber, LLC, the leading provider of processed-based product safety and quality audits for the food, beverage, animal feed, and packaging industries
- 2001 - NSF forms a strategic partnership with the National Nutritional Foods Association (NNFA), the nation's largest trade organization for manufacturers, retailers, and suppliers of natural products, to provide the most comprehensive certification program for the dietary supplements industry
- 2001 - NSF acquires the Institute for Nutraceutical Advancement (INA), an organization that develops and validates analytical methods for testing botanical ingredients
- 2002 - NSF launches food microbiological testing and sanitation audit services for the supermarket industry
- 2003 - NSF launches national consumer advertising campaign and the Scrub Club
- 2003 – NSF develops first American national standard for dietary supplements (NSF/ANSI 173)
- 2004 - NSF acquires Quality Assurance International, Inc. (QAI, Inc.), the global leader in organic certification
- 2004 - NSF opens office in Sao Paulo, Brazil
- 2004 - NSF launches the Scrub Club, a website that helps teach children about the importance of proper and consistent hand washing
- 2004 - NSF launches athletic banned substances certification program, which builds on the dietary supplement certification program to include screening for over 140 banned substances
- 2005 - NSF International Strategic Registrations, Ltd. (NSF-ISR) acquires the operations of Deloitte & Touche Quality Registrar Inc.
- 2005 - NSF expands testing operations in Taiwan with new laboratory in Taichung
- 2006 - NSF International establishes NSF Shanghai Co. Ltd. in the People's Republic of China
- 2006 - NSF International partners with the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport (CCES) to offer a certification program to minimize the risk that a sports nutrition product or supplement contains prohibited substances
- 2006 - NSF International partners with Philippine Government to develop drinking water standards
- 2006 - NSF partners with international food equipment experts to develop CEN Workshop Agreement for commercial food equipment
- 2006 - NSF International and the Centre Scientifique et Technique du Bâtiment announce strategic partnership to certify residential drinking water treatment products to European Standards
- 2006 - NSF International acquires Davis Fresh Technologies, the premier provider of food safety audits for the perishable food industry
- 2007 - NSF completes an 80,000 square-foot laboratory expansion at their headquarters in Ann Arbor, Michigan, to increase its engineering, microbiology, chemistry, and toxicology laboratory capabilities, bringing its headquarters and lab facility to a total of 150,000 square feet
- 2007 - NSF acquires CMi
- 2007 - NSF acquires David Begg Associates
- 2008 – NSF launches the Environmental Sustainability Program that provides carbon footprinting and accredited, third-party verification of environmental claims and greenhouse gas emissions. This program also includes standards development and certification for sustainable products, such as carpet, furniture, and other building materials, as well as Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification
- 2009 – NSF begins testing children's toys and products, becoming one of the first organizations to earn the Toy Safety Accreditation from the American National Standards Institute under the new Toy Industry Association's Toy Safety Certification Program
- 2009 – NSF opens office in India
- 2009 – NSF acquires Surefish, a recognized leader in seafood quality, with offices in Seattle, Alaska, Vietnam and South Korea
- 2010 – NSF opens office in Costa Rica
- 2010 – NSF launches certification program to verify quality, safety and performance of automotive aftermarket parts
- 2011 – NSF acquires Pharmalytica, a leader in pharmaceuticals and biotechnology
- 2011 – NSF International opens NSF Shanghai Testing Laboratory in China
- 2011 – NSF acquires AQA International LLC
