In the company's beginning, ISEGA was established as a material testing institute for paper and pulp. Already in the early days, high polymers and further packaging materials were added to the list. After the term "consumer goods" had been defined by the old foodstuffs and consumer goods law as well as by the new Foodstuffs and Animal Feed Code, testing systems were developed in the 70ies to confirm the compliance of goods for food contact in manufacturing pre-stages and as finished products.

The cooperation with expert committees, for example with the Federal Institute for Risk Assessment BfR allows the exchange of ideas with the authorities. For many valid definitions and limit values, the scientific data has been compiled by ISEGA. These activities have been extended to the cooperation with the corresponding European committees for evaluating of test standards and represent an important basis for the acknowledgment of ISEGA as a testing institute by associations and authorities as well as a basis for approving the laboratory on testing areas controlled by the law.

Without active participation in standardization bodies and associations a forward-looking conformity evaluation of food packages cannot be guaranteed. In order to stay up-to-date our institute in actively involved in the

DIN Standards committees:

• NA 057 Food and agricultural products
• NA 062 Materials testing
• NA 074 Paper and board
• NA 115 Packaging

Our General manager Dr. Derra is chairman of the following standards committees

• Butter packaging
• Chemical-technological testing methods for paper, board, fibrous material and synthetic pulp
• Consumer goods made of plastics in contact with foodstuffs – testing of the migration from plastics

In this cases, he also represents the German interests with CEN.

ISEGA employees are represented

· at the BfR:

• Working group paper
• Analysis committee

at DIN:

• Test methods for tissue paper and tissue products
• Hygiene management in the field of packaging manufacture

· Paper, board and pulp

• Testing for ability to use as food packagings
• Recommendation XXXVI FDA, Resolution of the Council of Europe
• Specific testing for the admission as butter wrapping material, sterilization packaging,
• filter material, ovenable boards, hygienic or recycling paper
• Analysis of additives
• Consulting for the approval of new chemicals

· Plastics, laminates, multilayer materials

• Specific and overall migration of monomers and additives, EN 1186, EN 13130
• Transfer of components of multilayer systems
• Evaluation of the impermeability of single layers
• Examination of formulations for their conformity with the demands on food contact materials

· Applied tests

• Contamination during application
• Influence on foodstuffs
• Effects on human beings
• Evaluation of extreme application cases

· Expert certificates

• Certificate of conformity with the demands on food contact materials
• Expert certificates
• Certificates of sample examination within the state foodstuff supervising system
• Certificates based on EN 45011

· Household appliances, dishes, hygienic articles

• Applied tests
• Release of pollutants
• Oven and microwave oven suitability
• Sensory tests and sensory impact
• Hygienic suitability

· Adhesives, optical brighteners, lacquers and inks

• Conformity with the demands on food contact materials
• Purity examinations and analysis of residues

· Acknowledgement of conformity

• Requirements on safe production and use
• Restrictions of use

· Medical and pharmaceutical applications

• Migration behavior
• Sterilizability, germ proofness, germ numbers

· Migration into filling materials

• Migration in direct and indirect contact
• Storage tests

· Compostability, biodegradability

• Testing according to DIN EN 13432

· Microbiology

• Germ numbers
• Microbial impact

· Quality management

• Product and production control
• Consulting and training in quality assessment and management based on our accredited quality management system HACCP-Consulting

· Sensory tests

• Oven and microwave oven suitability
• Effects on smell and taste
• Flavour proofness

· Toys

• EN 71 Parts 3, 9-11 and Recommendation XLVII

· Authorization and registration of new products

• Submission with national and European authorities
• Representation by experts