Standards are vitally important to the effective worldwide trade of products and services; they guarantee that what is on offer is of an exact specification and quality. Companies that use standards can expect both lower business costs and risks and higher market presence.

In the field of nanotechnology, the development of appropriate nomenclature and standards is still in its infancy, and fast progress is urgently required so as to avoid hampering the development and acceptance of nanotechnology-based innovation.

Several notable institutions have established dedicated technical committees that develop standards and norms in nanotechnology. These bodies operate:

So far over one hundred key vocabularies, as well as dozens of technical specifications and reports, have been produced. Nevertheless many more are needed, and active industry participation in the standardisation process is of the utmost importance in ensuring the best possible market conditions for nanotechnologies.

 

Support for NIA Members:

With its presence in standardisation committees at all different levels, NIA provides its members with specific support in Standards & Norms.

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News & Alerts

EFSA publishes updated Guidance on nanotechnology in food and feed

On July 4, EFSA published its 'Guidance on risk assessment of the application of nanoscience and nanotechnologies in the food and feed chain: Part 1, human and animal health'. The guidance was earlier this year out for public consultation, and it now enters a 'pilot phase' until the end of 2019. 

This guidance focus on human and animal healt aspects of products in the whole food chain. In 2019 EFSA foresee the publication of a second part, related to environmental aspects. 

Safe by Design workshop slides published

NIA was part of a multi-project consortium that delivered the 2 day workshop "Nanomaterials: Industrial workshop on Safe by Design" in Bilbao on April 24-25, managed by the project Nanogentools.

Projects dedicated to building the concept and tools behind Safe by Design came together, including: