News — cutting board safety

If you cut raw chicken on a chopping board and leave it unwashed for just 2 hours at room temperature, the surface can reach over 1,000,000 bacteria per square centimetre. So what’s the best way to stop your chopping board harbouring bacteria? Choose a low porosity board like bamboo or acacia, clean it within 10 minutes of use, and keep separate boards for raw meat and ready to eat foods. Why do chopping boards harbour bacteria in the first place? Chopping boards harbour bacteria because they combine moisture, food residue and tiny cuts in the surface. Every slice from a...

If you are choosing between a bamboo and a plastic cutting board and you care most about safety, a well maintained Moso bamboo board is usually safer for home kitchens, because it develops fewer deep knife grooves, is less likely to shed microplastics into food and, when washed within 10 minutes and dried upright, can be used safely for 5 to 10 years. Bamboo vs plastic cutting board which is safer for food hygiene? When people ask “bamboo vs plastic cutting board which is safer”, they are usually thinking about bacteria. Both surfaces can be food safe if you wash...

If you want the safest chopping board for everyday home cooking, a well maintained wooden board is usually safer than plastic over 5 to 10 years of use, because it tends to trap fewer live bacteria in deep cuts and is easier to keep in good condition with simple oiling and hand washing. Wooden vs plastic chopping boards: which is actually safer? Safety in the kitchen is not about one magic material. It is about how your board behaves after hundreds of cuts, washes and spills. Plastic boards often feel reassuring because they can go in the dishwasher at 60...

In the UK, chopping board colour coding is a food safety system where each colour is used for a specific food group to cut the risk of cross contamination. The most widely used scheme follows 7 colours: red for raw meat, blue for raw fish, yellow for cooked meat, green for salad and fruit, brown for vegetables, white for bakery and dairy, and purple for allergens or special diets. If you want the safest setup for a home or professional kitchen, the best approach is to follow these colours consistently and pair them with solid, non porous boards that are...