Why the Demand for Registered Cleaning Products Is Rising in the Food Industry

April 15, 2021

To avoid potential supply shortages of essential cleaning products, more and more food processors and restaurant operators are specifying products that meet their food safety requirements.

Ensuring a safe and hygienic environment through access to vital cleaning and disinfecting products has never been more paramount.

Workplaces, schools and other facilities all require easy access to cleaning products and typically source from the same suppliers. Food/beverage manufacturing and foodservice establishments are no exception. The difference is, while other industries can use the same type of cleaners those in food industries can use, a food facility or commercial kitchen requires more specialized cleaning products.

Processing facilities and foodservice operators must have—in the interest of food safety—cleaners that have been independently verified as being suitable for use in food production, restaurants and other food-related businesses. By registering your cleaning products with NSF’s nonfood compounds program, you can ensure compliance with requirements accepted globally by food companies and operators.

The Food Industry’s Wish List

If you want to sell your chemical cleaning and disinfecting products to the food processing and foodservice industries, these are the products you need to register to ensure greater acceptance from end users:

General use cleaners like dish soaps, all-purpose cleaners, foaming cleansers and degreasers
Acid cleaning products that remove rust corrosion, scale or other deposits not removable by alkaline products, such as descaling products for coffee machines
Cleaners used in non-food processing areas like toilet/bathroom cleaners
Scouring cleaners for stains that standard cleaners cannot handle
Specialty cleaners including electronic instrument cleaners, adhesive/glue removers and coil cleaners
Products that clean and sanitize floors and walls in sub-freezing places like temperature-controlled warehouses and walk-in freezers
Stainless steel cleaners/polishers, furniture cleaners/polishers and corrosion inhibitors for products that do not come in contact with food
Hand sanitizers
Antimicrobial cleaners used to sanitize hard, non-porous surfaces like countertops or work tables
Degreasers and carbon removers for ovens, grills, smokers and other utensils and surfaces exposed to conditions that lead to caked-in grease or carbon buildup
Drain and sewer cleaners