Based in the United States, the NSF International provides certification of products around the world that meet their standards for consumer safety. Contrary to what some salesmen may tell you, NSF is not a government entity, but an independent, non-profit organization. What does the NSF seal mean, who finds it important, and should home chef's be concerned if their cookware isn't NSF certified?

Whenever I shop for food, I look at the ingredients listing to see what went into it. It started off as just a simple fascination with what factories use to make foods, but now I'm looking to see if partially hydrogenated vegetable oil (an indicator of the presence of trans fatty acids) are in the food (as well as other "unnatural" substances). I have a tendency to shy away from foods that have ingredients that I cannot recognize - but what are these weird ingredients and what do they do? What are they doing in my food (especially since I don't have them in my pantry and don't use them in my home cooked meals)? Here's a list that I've been slowly compiling of food additives.