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The Best Food-Safe Finish May Be None At All - Fine Woodworking Article
(www.finewoodworking.com)
this post was submitted on 05 Apr 2025
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But then the wood cracks and starts to fall apart? Or perhaps this only happens with glued projects?
Wood is naturally porous, which allows bacteria and microorganisms places to live and grow. It's extremely difficult to clean out porous surfaces which is why coating is preferred.
I'll be upfront and say I'm no scientist, but working with food for a large portion of my life has shown me that wood utensils and unfinished wood products are less safe due to the bacterial growth issues. The alternative is using plastic... Pick your poison?
I have used bamboo for a cutting board and although it is neat, I am hesitant to use it due to the bamboo splitting (probably my bad).
Edit: https://www.fsis.usda.gov/food-safety/safe-food-handling-and-preparation/food-safety-basics/cutting-boards
Bamboo boards are best according to usda, followed by SOLID wood boards.
ugh, no thanks. plastics for food is one of the most vile inventions of humankind. food starts to "sweat", and it gets gross; it starts to smell really fast and bacteria and fungi grow on the food. especially if you put food in the fridge in a plastics box.
Let's branch to a conversation about micorplastics... https://www.foodandwine.com/are-plastic-cutting-boards-safe-8624857