NSF Launches Retail Food Safety Audits Programme in ASEAN and Australia

NSF, a leading global public health and safety organisation, today announced the launch of its Retail Food Safety Audits programme throughout the ASEAN region and Australia. The programme introduces three services: NSF Food Safety Essentials, NSF Food Safety Plus and NSF Food Safety Advanced — designed to help food businesses of all sizes elevate food safety performance, reduce operational risks and build consumer confidence.

“The rapid economic growth and advancing urbanisation in the ASEAN region have fuelled significant expansion in the food industry. In Australia, the sector continues to demonstrate steady growth driven by strong consumer spending habits. By introducing these services in the ASEAN and Australian markets, we’re demonstrating our commitment to supporting food businesses with effective and scalable solutions that address regional compliance challenges,” said Sutida Ketudut, Managing Director of APAC at NSF. “From small restaurants to multinational chains, our programmes provide the tools and expertise needed to raise food safety standards, reduce risk and build lasting consumer confidence.”

The programme provides a clear, practical framework for the food service, hospitality and retail food sectors, addressing challenges from day-to-day food operations to complex supply chains. Each audit programme is designed to meet the unique needs of businesses at different stages of growth:

NSF Food Safety Essentials

This foundational programme evaluates four core areas: 

• Food safety
• Cleanliness
• Repair and maintenance
• Brand standards

It provides small to medium-sized food retailers and restaurants with actionable insights, a detailed audit report and an optional NSF Food Safety Essentials badge for display.

NSF Food Safety Plus

Designed for growing brands, this service incorporates regular audits using the NSF Food Safety Checklist and provides additional valuable insights through NSF Connect, a cloud-based audit platform. It helps businesses drive consistent standards across multiple sites, benchmark their performance and manage corrective actions.

NSF Food Safety Advanced

Created for large, multinational brands and master franchisees, this service delivers customised, globally consistent, data‑driven audits that integrate NSF expert insights with local regulatory knowledge. This helps businesses proactively manage risks, manage compliance, and strengthen customer trust.

Businesses that successfully meet audit requirements can opt in to display the relevant NSF Food Safety badge, signalling their commitment to safety and quality. Customers can scan the badge’s QR code to learn more about the programme and the standards achieved.

With the introduction of these new services, NSF aims to help empower ASEAN and Australian food businesses implement best practises, strengthen compliance and enhance customer trust across diverse markets.

NSF is an independent, global services organisation dedicated to improving human health for more than 80 years by developing public health standards and providing world-class testing, inspection, certification, advisory services and digital solutions to the food, water and wellness products industries. NSF has 40,000 clients in 110 countries and is a World Health Organisation (WHO) Collaborating Centre on Food Safety, Water Quality and Medical Device Safety.