what do you all use when making bowls, spoons & other utensils for food service? any particularly bad (toxic?). thanks, mike
[OP]
Member
what do you all use when making bowls, spoons & other utensils for food service? any particularly bad (toxic?). thanks, mike
Member
Beech, Birch, Maple and Sycamore are all good choices. They are close grained, so they don't have big open pores for food to get stuck in. They also don't impart much flavor to food.
Yew (taxus) has poison in it. I wouldn't use any strong smelling or strong tasting woods. I'd stay away from woods with open grain structure also.
( Red Oak for one example) Spalting is caused by several different types of fungus I am not sure how edible any of them are. I wouldn't use spalted wood for food unless there is a study that shows it is safe.
Tom
Member
If you Google "wood toxicity" you can see several charts that list what's toxic -- both to ingest and to breathe the dust of. Spalted wood is a no no as are many exotics.
[OP]
Member
yes, joel, i'm sure i could - but people post on forums like this one to hear responses of a more 'personal' experience, from people who's opinions they have come to trust. it's just like when people say, 'read the faq' - well, searches don't always reveal everything related to a subject one is looking for, or answer it in a way one might seek. if a person doesn't want to answer a question, just go to the next topic. mike
In Memoriam
I agree on close-grained woods like Maple and Beech. I disagree that using spalted wood for food contact is dangerous.
Yes, spalting is caused by fungal organisms but if you go outside, you are breathing those same organisms since they are constantly in the air, just like pollen.
There were recently a couple of great articles about spalted wood in Fine Woodworking magazine from a Phd that specializes in it. She's actually done clinical research on spalted wood and debunks much of the misinformation about it that is found on the internet.
Cody
Logmaster LM-1 sawmill, 30 hp Kioti tractor w/ FEL, Stihl 290 chainsaw, 300 bf cap. Solar Kiln
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Sorry if I offended you -- I happened to be looking at a few charts of wood toxicity last week and found it useful. I thought you might.Originally Posted by Mike Minto
[OP]
Member
joel, i'm not offended by anything you or anyone else says here on the forum - and didn't mean to offend you, either. it's just i see similar responses, particularly ones to the effect of 'read the faq', by people who think they are making a point by saying that; again, to that i say, if a person is not interested in a posting's subject, they should simply not post to that thread, and leave the thread to those who are interested. mike
Member
Just about any wood is OK for food contact unless its yew and certain tropical species that are in the poison ivy family, so long as the utensil has a film finish on it. That pretty much means any domestic species.
For items that will not have a film finish (such as just wax, or a non-drying oil like walnut or mineral), I'd avoid woods that are strongly allergy inducing. Generally that means staying away from the rosewood family.
You are certainly safe with maple, though that could get a bit boring after a while.
Member
Avoid oleander-at all costs.
Member
there is many ill effects associated with woods just for starters here is a reference of Potentially Toxic Woods
/Class: irritant sensitizers
/Reaction Category: Eye and skin irritation, Respiratory problems. Nausea, Cancer
/Potency: Small, great, extreme.
/Source: Dust or wood, or both
/Incidence: Unknown, rare, or common.
- Afromosia: irritant/eye & skin, respiratory/great/dust/rare
- Alder: irritant/eye & skin, respiratory
- Angelico: irritant/eye & skin, respiratory/great/dust
- Arborvitae: irritant/respiratory
- Ash: irritant/respiratory
- Baldcypress: sensitizer/respiratory/small/dust/rare
- Balsam fir: sensitizer/eye & skin/small/dust/rare
- Beech: sensitizer/respiratory/great/dust/rare
- Birch: sensitizer/respiratory, nausea/great/dust, wood/rare
- Black locust: irritant/nausea/great/rare
- Blackwood: sensitizer/eye & skin/great/dust, wood/common
- Boxwood: sensitizer/respiratory/small/dust, wood/rare
- Cashew: sensitizer/eye & skin/great/dust, wood/rare
- Chechem: irritant/respiratory, eye & skin/great/dust, wood/unknown
- Cocobolo: irritant/respiratory, eye & skin/great/dust, wood/common
- Dahoma: sensitizer/respiratory/great/dust/common
- Ebony: irritant, sensitizer/respiratory, eye & skin/great/dust, wood/common
- Elm: sensitizer/eye & skin/small/dust/rare
- Fir: irritant/eye & skin/small/rare
- Goncolo alves: sensitizer/eye & skin/small/dust, wood/rare
- Greenheart: sensitizer/respiratory, eye & skin/extreme/dust, wood/common
- Guarea: sensitizer/eye & skin/extreme/dust/rare
- Hemlock: nasal cancer/great/dust/rare
- Ipe: irritant/respiratory, eye & skin
- Iroko: irritant/respiratory, eye & skin/extreme/dust, wood/common
- Katon: irritant/respiratory
- Kingwood: irritant/eye & skin
- Mahogany, American: sensitizer/respiratory, eye & skin/small/dust/rare
- Mahogany, African: sensitizer/respiratory/great/dust/rare
- Makore: irritant/respiratory, eye & skin
- Mansonia: irritant/respiratory, eye & skin/extreme/dust, wood/common
- Manzinilla: irritant/respiratory/dust/rare
- Maple: sensitizer/respiratory/great/dust, wood/rare
- Mimosa: irritant/nasal/extreme/dust, wood/common
- Myrtle: sensitizer/respiratory/great/dust, wood/common
- Oak, red: nasal/great/dust/rare
- Obeche: sensitizer/respiratory, eye & skin/great/dust/common
- Olivewood: sensitizer/respiratory, eye & skin/great/dust, wood/common
- Opepe: sensitizer/respiratory/small/dust/rare
- Orangewood: respiratory/rare
- Padauk: irritant/respiratory, eye & skin, nausea/extreme/dust, wood/common
- Pau ferro: sensitizer/eye & skin/small/dust, wood/rare
- Peroba rose: sensitizer/respiratory/great/dust, wood/common
- Peroba white: sensitizer/respiratory, eye & skin
- Purpleheart: sensitizer/eye & skin, nausea/small/dust, wood/rare
- Quebracho: nasal cancer/great/dust/rare
- Ramin: irritant/respiratory, eye & skin/small/dust/rare
- Redwood: sensitizer/respiratory, nasal cancer/small/dust/rare
- Rosewood(s): irritant, sensitizer/respiratory, eye & skin/extreme/dust, wood/common
- Satinwood: irritant/respiratory, eye & skin/extreme/dust, wood/common
- Sassafras: sensitizer/respiratory, nausea, nasal cancer/small/dust, wood/rare
- Sequoia: irritant/respiratory, nasal cancer/small/dust, wood/rare
- Snakewood: irritant/respiratory/great/dust, wood/rare
- Spruce: sensitizer/respiratory/small/dust, wood/rare
- Stavewood: irritant/respiratory
- Sucupira: irritant/respiratory
- Teak: sensitizer/eye & skin/extreme/dust/common
- Walnut, black: sensitizer/eye & skin/great/leaves & bark/unknown
- Wenge: sensitizer/respiratory, eye & skin/great/dust/common
- Willow: sensitizer/nasal cancer/great/dust/unknown
- W. redcedar: sensitizer/respiratory, nasal cancer/great/dust/common
- Yew, Europe: irritant/eye & skin/great/dust/common
- Zebrawood: sensitizer/eye & skin/great/dust/rare
Member
Member
i'm sure it will not be toxic... i've heard of maple being used very often
Member
Tell you a story that is kind of and kind of not related to this topic. Back in the early 80ies I worked in a supermarket. They had large wooden benches used to prepare produce for sale. Anyway, the state made it illegal to use wooden benches to prepare food due to possible contamination. They made stores switch to metal. I asked what they were going to do with that big solid old wooden produce bench, with tons of storage space underneath it. They said bust it up and dump it. That never happened! I went there the next day with some friends and a pickup truck, and it's been in my basement ever since! After a good cleaning, sanding and painting, I've used it for anything and everything over the years.
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How about apple wood? I know its good for the smoker
Member
If you can eat it, you can eat off of it-I guess.
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