Why Berkey products are not available in California.

The state of California has established regulations and procedures for the sale of indoor water systems. Under these regulations, California requires that any water treatment system sold in the state be certified by an independent third-party testing agency, such as NSF, before it is eligible for sale in California. NSF Standard 42 (aesthetic effects) and Standard 53 (health effects) would specifically apply to our elements.

NSF Standard 42 covers systems “designed to reduce specific aesthetic or non-health-related contaminants such as chlorine, taste, odor, and particulates that may be present in public or private drinking water.

NSF Standard 53 addresses “systems designed to reduce specific health-related contaminants, such as Cryptosporidium, Giardia, lead, Volatile Organic Chemicals, MTBE that may be present in public or private drinking water.”

The tests we have conducted are much more rigorous than those required by NSF for the certifications mandated by the state of California. Our filters have been rigorously tested by third-party, independent, accredited laboratories, far surpassing the above standard in terms of taste, odor, and chlorine reduction.

These test results are published and available to all our consumers on our website and in our printed literature. Additionally, a highly publicized test of our filters against similar water filtration systems has been conducted, supporting our third-party testing.

Although our extensive testing is sufficient for 49 states in the US, it is currently not acceptable for California residents.

Once NSF certification has been obtained, the state of California also requires companies to pay high fees to obtain and maintain state certification.

Ultimately, we have concluded that the additional taxes, certifications, and bureaucratic requirements have created an insurmountable barrier to our firm offering our systems in the state of California.