Pohang, the Future of K-Food, Opens Asia's First NSF International Testing and Certification Body... Leaping Toward a Global Food Tech Hub

A new chapter in the food tech industry has begun in Pohang, North Gyeongsang Province.

On November 24, Pohang City, together with North Gyeongsang Province, held the opening ceremony for Asia's first NSF International testing and certification body at the Pohang Materials Industry Promotion Institute, marking the official start of building a global food tech certification ecosystem.

Pohang City Opens Asia's First NSF International Testing and Certification Body. Photo by Pohang City

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NSF is an internationally accredited testing and certification organization headquartered in Michigan, USA. It evaluates the quality and safety of commercial food equipment, including food robots, and issues globally recognized certifications. In particular, NSF certification is known as a prerequisite for entering the North American and European markets.

Until now, domestic companies had to send their products directly to the United States to undergo the certification process, bearing long inspection periods (up to six months) and high logistics and certification costs.

To address this, Pohang City and North Gyeongsang Province signed a "Global Food Tech Certification Cooperation MOU" with NSF at the groundbreaking ceremony for the Food Tech Research Support Center in July, which included the designation of the Food Robot Food Tech Research Support Center as an NSF testing and certification body.

This opening ceremony was held as a follow-up to that agreement, celebrating the official designation of the Pohang Materials Industry Promotion Institute as Asia's first NSF testing and certification body, following the United States and Europe, as the dedicated organization for the establishment of the Food Tech Research Support Center.

The event was attended by Yang Geumhee, Vice Governor for Economic Affairs of North Gyeongsang Province; Seo Jaewon, Political Affairs Advisor to Pohang City; Choi Haegon, Chair of the Welfare and Environment Committee of the Pohang City Council; Melissa Cash, Vice President of Global Marketing at NSF; Jeong Seongmi, Vice President of the World Food Tech Council; as well as representatives from Neuromeka, KT, Polaris 3D, Graphene Square, Korea Institute of Robot and Convergence, Doosan Robotics, and more than 50 stakeholders from industry, academia, and research institutes.

The official event included welcoming and congratulatory speeches, a report on the background and progress of attracting the NSF International testing and certification body, an unveiling ceremony, and a session to directly observe the certification procedures. The final networking session provided an opportunity for domestic companies and research institutes to engage in Q&A with NSF officials about the certification process and to exchange a wide range of opinions on the future direction of the food tech industry.

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Pohang City and North Gyeongsang Province plan to link the Food Robot Food Tech Research Support Center, currently under construction in Iin-ri, Heunghaeeup, with the NSF certification body to establish a one-stop food tech support system that covers everything from technology development, testing and inspection, international certification, prototype demonstration, to support for entering overseas markets.

Once this system is in place, domestic companies will no longer have to send their products to the United States for NSF certification. The inspection period will be reduced from six months to one month, and certification costs will be cut by about 30 percent. In addition, immediate testing, improvement, and re-verification will be possible within Korea, significantly reducing both time and cost burdens for companies, which in turn is expected to strengthen their competitiveness in overseas markets.

NSF also expressed its intention to use the opening of the Pohang certification center as an opportunity to enhance accessibility in the Asian market and to strengthen cooperation in international joint research and the establishment of food equipment standards, with Korea as a key hub.

Mayor Lee Kangdeok stated, "This opening marks the starting point for Pohang to become a city that sets the standards for the global food equipment industry. Moving forward, Pohang will continue to build a robust growth ecosystem for the food tech industry as a center for global certification and technical support, expanding beyond Asia to the world."

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