Food-contact and potable-water certification

A water or food-grade container is only as trustworthy as its documentation. This sets out the certifications that apply and what to ask a supplier for, so a food-contact claim rests on evidence rather than a finish.

Material comes first

Food contact starts with the material. AISI 304 stainless steel and food-grade HDPE are the safe choices; galvanized steel is not, because the zinc coating is not food-safe. No certificate rescues the wrong material, so confirm the build before the paperwork.

The certifications that apply

• Food-contact regulation. In the US, the FDA sets food-contact material rules under 21 CFR. In the EU, framework Regulation 1935/2004 and plastics Regulation 10/2011 apply. A supplier issues a Declaration of Compliance stating which the material meets.
• Potable-water approval. For drinking water, schemes such as WRAS in the UK and NSF/ANSI 61 in North America certify that a material does not taint water. Ask which applies in your market.
• Material certificate. For stainless, an EN 10204 3.1 mill certificate states the exact grade and composition of the steel used.

What to request

Ask for the Declaration of Compliance for your market's food-contact regulation, the potable-water certificate if the container holds drinking water, and the stainless mill certificate for the grade. If a supplier cannot produce these for the specific design, treat the food-grade claim as unproven.

How Fortitude21 handles it

Our stainless water and food-grade lines are AISI 304, and we supply the material and food-contact documentation on request against your order and market. See the water and food-grade range.