Food Safe Finishes

  • July 23, 2019 2:46 PM
    Message # 7792823

    Just got through reading information on various finishes for Butcher Blocks, Cutting Boards, Salad bowls and utensils. The General Finishes product "Wood Bowl Finish" that is a replacement for their early product "Salad Bowl Finish" which was labeled non-Toxic has more toxic warnings on it then normal varnish.

    If used it will harden on the wood, but is very susceptible to cracking and chipping when used with a sharp object, such as a knife and fork! I've tried all the other products out there that either never dry or have to re-finished once a month. 

    Suggestions would be appreciated.

    Thanks,

    Jim

  • July 26, 2019 8:14 PM
    Reply # 7798916 on 7792823

    Bob Flexner has had several articles in Popular Woodworking over the years. He concludes that nearly all finishes are food-safe once fully cured.  I haven't cross-checked his conclusions against other opinion or research.  See https://www.popularwoodworking.com/article/the_many_faces_of_varnish/2/  (2007); https://www.popularwoodworking.com/techniques/q-a-is-polyurethane-food-safe/ (American WW, 2002);  https://www.popularwoodworking.com/nov16/explaining-polymerized-oil/   (2016)   You can also, for $1.99, download his Nov. 1999 Pop WW article "The Folly of Food-Safe Finishes"   https://www.popularwoodworking.com/product/flexner-on-finishing-the-folly-of-food-safe-finishes/.          Out of curiosity, I just did a simple search at the Fine WW web site, without logging in.  Go to https://www.finewoodworking.com/, enter "food safe finish" in the search window, and you'll see a number of articles, beginning with this January's https://www.finewoodworking.com/2019/01/10/food-safe-finish-considerations.  If you turn up anything helpful and authoritative, please let me know!

  • July 26, 2019 8:33 PM
    Reply # 7798935 on 7792823

    Just saw a reference, below the first FWW article, to Flexner's "Folly" piece, posted at http://www.woodcentral.com/articles/finishing/articles_497a.shtml.    So you don't need to pay $1.99 for the PDF!

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