NSF and Impossible Foods announce that Impossible Beef and Impossible Burger are designated as NSF Certified for Sport – a first for any plant-based meat or fresh food product in the certification program’s history.

Impossible Foods’ plant-based beef and burger products feature 19 grams of high-quality, complete protein (38% DV) – comparable to the protein in animal meat, but with zero milligrams of cholesterol, 33% less saturated fat and 40% less total fat. Plus, they’re sources of energy-producing carbohydrates, B vitamins and electrolytes like potassium.

“NSF Certified for Sport is the gold standard in sports. It’s a huge deal to have Impossible Foods certified as the first plant-based meat available to athletes,” said Peter McGuinness, president and chief executive officer at Impossible Foods. “Americans are more aware than ever about the food they put in their bodies. It’s our responsibility to deliver on delicious, nutrient-dense, high-quality food, like our plant-based beef that’s packed with protein. This certification is further proof that we’re holding ourselves accountable, and that athletes, dietitians and all consumers can feel good about our products.”

NSF is a global public health and safety organization that tests and certifies products to help protect athletes and consumers from potentially harmful ingredients and athletic-banned substances in consumer-packaged goods. Its rigorous Certified for Sport program requires testing for more than 290 athletic-banned substances as well as potentially harmful levels of specific contaminants like lead and arsenic, and confirms that all product labels accurately represent the contents of the product.

“NSF welcomes Impossible Foods to the Certified for Sport program as the first and only fresh food to reach our highest level of certification for athletes and active consumers,” said David Trosin, senior director, Nutrition and Wellness at NSF. “NSF is committed to protecting and improving human health worldwide. By meeting our rigorous requirements for Certified for Sport, Impossible Foods is demonstrating its commitment to clean sport as well as quality, safety and good manufacturing processes for its plant-based beef products.”

With certification, Impossible Foods’ plant-based beef and burger products offered in foodservice establishments will be included in NSF’s online listing of certified products and on the NSF for Sport app.

NSF Certified for Sport is a certification program trusted by professional athletes, trainers and dietitians, helping them make more informed decisions about the products they recommend and consume. MLB, NHL and CFL clubs provide and recommend products that are Certified for Sport, and players are urged to use only these certified products. The Certified for Sport certification is also recommended by the NFL, PGA, LPGA, CCES, CPSDA and Taylor Hooton Foundation, as well as many other sports organizations.

“All athletes need protein, but the type of protein the athlete prefers varies person to person. Providing a fresh and safe food supply for athletes who want to eat more plant-based protein can be a challenge throughout the season,” said Becci Roehl, veteran sports dietitian for various professional and college athletics programs, founding board member to the American Sports and Performance Dietitians Association, and president of the Professional Baseball Dietitian Society. “Failure to meet their protein needs can impair their ability to recover over the long season. Having a plant-based protein that is NSF Certified for Sport, like Impossible Beef, will add a new weapon to our arsenal, helping athletes to be resilient; staying available on the field for optimal performance.”

From Oct. 11-14, 2025, Impossible is showcasing its NSF Certified for Sport products at the annual Food & Nutrition Conference & Expo, the world’s largest meeting of food and nutrition experts, in Nashville, Tenn. Attendees will have the opportunity to sample Impossible dishes made with products across Impossible’s nutrient-dense portfolio of plant-based meat, including Impossible Lite Beef, which holds health designations from both the American Heart Association’s Heart-Check Program and the American Diabetes Association's Better Choices for Life Program.

Source: Impossible Foods