Best Finish for Salad / Food Bowls

[Mike Cyros]

This question has been asked many times in the past I'm sure, and always seems to get a different answer. What recommendations do you have for the best (includes being safe) finish for bowls for food like salad bowls. Is a pure mineral oil really the best way to go? Nut, vegetable oils? What do you recommend as the best source?

Thanks for your advice!

[Blake McCully]

This question has been asked many times in the past I'm sure, and always seems to get a different answer. What recommendations do you have for the best (includes being safe) finish for bowls for food like salad bowls. Is a pure mineral oil really the best way to go? Nut, vegetable oils? What do you recommend as the best source?

Thanks for your advice!
Mike,
I'm not an expert, and I'm sure the experts out there will give advice, all I can do is spout recommendations from others. One theory, is that nearly any finish will become food safe. The trick is, to wait until the odor of the finish has completely left the item, I'm not sold on this. Ray Raffan uses a mixture of bees wax and peanut oil. Most articles I've read suggest that you do not use any kind of vegetable oil since it can become rancid. There is a commercially available finish called "salad oil" that is also suggested. I've also read that using food grade mineral oil is also safe.

Now that I've muddied the waters a whole bunch, take this for what it's worth :rolleyes: I'm sure you'll get a ton more advice. Now, you job, should you choose to take it, is to try, try, and try again until you get what suits you.

[Adam Howard]

I use Tried and True Original Wood Finish. It's a highly polymerized linseed oil, and beeswax. This is really good stuff.

Unlike regular linseed oil, this is made without any heavy metal drying agents, so is food safe.

Here are the specifics...

http://www.triedandtruewoodfinish.com/standards.htm

[Matthew Clarke]

Hi Mike,

Blake is correct in stating that any finish will work. If you let the finish dry between coats, and then wait about 30 days after the final coat, all of the volitile compounds in the finish will have evaporated. So, those compounds will not get into the food. According to Bob Flexner, all finishes are food safe.

That said, what you may want from a finish for food service, is a compromise between resistance to oils (salad dressings, vegetable oils, etc) and acids (e.g., tomatoes) and some flexibility in the finish itself (in case you are called upon to renew the finish). That is why I do not use finishes such as lacquer for items to go into food service or acrylics because they are too hard. Lacquer does not resist alchohol and doesn't really hold up well to the constant washing and drying. Polyurethane and most acrylics are too hard, show scratches and are very difficult to renew. Most oil finishes such as Tung Oil, Antique Oil and Varnish are a nice compromise between harness and resistance to oils, water and alchohol. I like to use two coats of Shellac as a sealer before applying the oil finish. It seems to give it a very smooth base. I hope that you find this useful.

Matt

[Jim Becker]

Unlike regular linseed oil, this is made without any heavy metal drying agents, so is food safe.

T&T's claims, while true in a sense, really mean it would be safer to drink their product. (But who would want to? At least mineral oil has a purpose for that...if you need it ;) ) But all finishes are "food safe" once fully cured, so their argument is moot in the long term. Please understand I love T&T and use it. But marketing is what it is and always needs to be considered in proper perspective. BTW, finishes are not "tested" by any regulatory body so any claims by any manufacturer about being "food safe" are purely marketing claims.

To the original poster, I like mineral oil on things like salad bowls that will get washed frequently (no soap, please...) and any other finish for items that will not be used as frequently or for dry items.

[Adam Howard]

First, I'll agree that most finishes are generally safe once cured. Any VOC's (volatile organics) should be gone, and health hazards like heavy metals are immobilized in the finish, and would require the finish to be dissolved in order for the harmful agents to be liberated. You'd have to eat a lot to get harmed. I'm a chemist by trade....;)

I do believe that T+T finishes are excellent, and give superb results. That's most important. If it weren't excellent, I wouldn't use it.

I sell some of my work, so I'm conscious of what the customer wants, and often they need reassuring that something is safe to use. Using "environmentally friendly" finishes like Tried and True allows me to say without a doubt or controversy that my bowls, etc., are safe for food. The general public has a phobia about chemicals, and making folks comfortable often makes the difference on a sale.

Being able to point to T+T's link lends much more credibility than my saying "I use a blend of oils, and it's safe".

Even though I believe cured finishes are generally safe....given the choice, I'll choose the one without VOC's and heavy metals.