Aquaculture North America

NSF International moves seafood program to Port of Everett

June 3, 2019
By ANA staff

NSF International, a product testing, inspection and certification agency based in Ann Arbor, Mich., has moved its seafood services program from Seattle to the Port of Everett in Everett, Wash. The new location is centrally located between Seattle and the Canadian border, allowing for more convenient access for both U.S. and Canadian seafood industries, a statement from the organization said.

NSF International senior inspector Scott Albrecht begins work on a sample whole cod at the new seafood services program office at the Port of Everett in Everett

“The Port of Everett is in the midst of a commercial and private expansion wave,” said Tom White, global manager for certification and audits for NSF International’s seafood services. “We’re excited to open our new headquarters in such a bustling and visually stunning location. Everett is approximately 30 miles north of our former location in Seattle, and being on the north side of that urban hub allows us much more convenient access to both the Seattle market and Canadian seafood businesses just across the international border.”

Proximity to source is essential for NSF International’s seafood services team, which frequently collects samples from seafood suppliers and transports those samples back to the headquarters for testing and evaluation.

The new location also marks a new collaboration with the Washington State University (WSU)/University of Idaho (UI) Center for Advanced Food Technology. NSF International’s seafood experts will work closely with the educational program and collaborate on workshops and training. The move also enables NSF International to expand its seafood industry education and training space.

“In our former location, education capacity was limited to less than a dozen per class. With access to the UI/WSU education space, we can expand our enrollment to as many as 60 per class,” said White.

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The chief of business development at Port Everett welcomes NSF International into its area. “Given our strategy to support and grow the maritime and seafood industry, it’s a perfect fit, and we are eager to have them aboard,” said Terrie Battuello.

In addition to growing education and training capacity, the new space allows NSF International to expand its seafood consulting and product evaluation services. Separately, NSF continues to be ANSI-accredited to perform Best Aquaculture Practices certification, and also provides audits for seafood HACCP, gap analysis audits for Global Food Safety Initiative certifications such as BRC and SQF, and supplier audits.

NSF International also plans to launch a new education program that will help grocery stories, restaurants and seafood distributors “provide a higher level of expertise and knowledge to their seafood buyers, fishmongers or seafood inspectors,” according to White. “Eventually, we’ll offer a similar program for consumers who want to become smarter seafood shoppers.”


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