Is Wood Worktop Safe For Food?

In determining whether wood worktops are safe for food, there are two things which should be considered.  The first is the finish on the wood itself and the second is the cleaning and maintenance regime you put in place.

Prior to fitting, in order to make wooden worktops resistant to stains, they need to be treated with a protective oil.  When choosing an oil for your worktops, if you want to prepare food directly on the worktop surface, it is important that you choose a food-safe oil.

Food-safe oil is easy enough to track down.  With a bit of research, you will be able to track down official guidelines on the suitability of any product you plan to use in conjunction with food preparation.  It is really important that you carry out appropriate toxicity research before applying any oil to your worktop if you plan to prepare food directly on the worktop.  That said, once you have carried out this research, if you are still in any doubt whatsoever about the suitability of the oil, you should consult your worktop supplier who will be able to guide you.

One important thing to bear in mind when oiling your worktop is not to use vegetable oil or olive oil to treat your wooden worktop.  Treating your worktop with these oils is is not a good idea if you’re wanting to use your worktop directly for food preparation.  The reason for this is that these oils effectively “rot” in the wood and cause a build up of bacteria, potentially making your worktop unsafe for food preparation.

When it comes to regular maintenance and cleaning of your worktop to make it safe for food preparation, a regularly oiled (treated with food-safe oil) wood worktop is as easy to clean and maintain as any other worktop.  All you need to do is make sure that you mop up any spills which occur and could result in bacterial build up.  Thereafter, a regular wipe down with a mild detergent will keep your worktop clean and safe.

All of that said, if you are using your wood worktop for direct food preparation, you need to be really careful not to inadvertently damage the surface with knives or other sharp objects.