Making food-safe pottery is a serious business. It is not something to be taken lightly. The proper care needs to be taken for this process, or there can be health risks.
To ensure their cooking dishes and ovenware are safe for food use, they must follow specific guidelines. To make sure that your pottery is safe for use with food, you need to take a professional approach.
This article will provide you with some steps on how to make food safe pottery that you can take to ensure that your pottery is safe for use with food.
What is Food-Safe Pottery and How Does It Work?
Food-safe pottery is earthenware, stoneware, and porcelain kitchenware that has been labeled as safe for cooking food in. It works using a process called verification.
Although the term sounds like it refers to glass, it relates to an agent added during the firing process of ceramic glazing. The agent interacts with the silica and alumina to form a crystal in the glaze. Since food cannot attach or bind to this barrier, it allows easier clean-up after use.
Some Pro Guidelines On How to Make Food Safe Pottery?
There are specific guidelines that are followed to ensure the quality of your food-safe pottery.
1. Select the Correct Material
There is a massive variety of materials that potters can use to make food-safe pottery. Some common materials include.
Earthenware: This is an old material used successfully to make food-safe pottery for centuries. There are two types, red and white.
Stoneware: Like earthenware, this material can be used for food-safe pottery. It is often more durable than earthenware, and it has a more delicate texture.
Porcelain: This is an excellent and durable material usually only used for decorative purposes. However, it also works well for making food-safe pottery too.
2. Stick to High-Fire Processes
High firing processes are better for making food-safe pottery because combustion products are less harmful or nonexistent in high-fire kilns. Low-fire procedures should be avoided because the byproducts are more likely to leach into your glazes and poison your food.
3. Use Lead-Free Glazes
Potters should always select glazes devoid of lead or lead compounds whenever possible because lead is poisonous to humans when ingested. Low-lead glazes are also available for pottery which you can use further to reduce the risk of harm to your customers.
4. Avoid Slips Containing Metals
Slips containing metals should never be used because they can flake off into food and poison it. Slips containing minerals like chromium, copper, iron, nickel, tin, zinc are also dangerous because these could contaminate your food with heavy metal poisoning.
5. Avoid Contaminated Firing Ranges
Food-safe pottery can be contaminated when fired next to non-food safe pottery. Potters should always take care to use a separate kiln for making food-safe ware and firing it away from regular kitchenware to keep the risk of contamination low.
6. Follow Good Manufacturing Practices
Good manufacturing practices should be followed at all times. This means a food-grade environment and workspace, hygienic storage for supplies, and careful transport of finished products to market.
7. Test Your Pottery Before Selling
Before selling food-safe pottery to your customers, be sure to test it yourself first. This means cooking food and carefully examining the glaze for signs of poisoning or contamination.
If you follow all these guidelines, you can ensure that your food-safe pottery is genuinely safe for human consumption.
These are some of the guidelines that are followed to ensure the quality of your food-safe pottery.
How to Make Sure Your Pottery Is Food Safe?
There is a process to ensure the quality of your food-safe pottery, so you need to follow some guidelines.
- Ensure the glaze does not contain lead or other dangerous compounds.
- Your clay body should be high-fired and not contain lead or other dangerous compounds.
- Ensure that your workspace is clean, hygienic, and free of contaminants like flaking glazes from non-food safe pots.
- Be sure to have a separate kiln used for firing food-safe ware.
- Always follow good manufacturing practices, which means working in a food-grade environment and space.
- Always label your pottery as food-safe before selling it.
- Always test your finished product by cooking in it and carefully examining the glaze for signs of poisoning or contamination.
As you can see, these guidelines are essential to ensure that your pottery is truly food-safe, and customers will trust you more because they know that the quality of the food-safe pottery you make is the best.
What is the Best Way to Decorate Food-Safe Potter?
There are different ways to decorate food-safe pottery. Here are the most popular methods used.
Paint
Paints can be used to give your pottery a decorative finish that allows you to get creative with colors and styles. Dyes are also more resistant to chips and scratches than glazing but can come off when they contact food or liquids.
Glaze
Glazes can give your pottery a wide variety of colors and styles while protecting it from liquids, stains, and corrosion. A good glaze should be durable yet not harm your food in any way when it is cooked inside the pottery.
Graffito Decorating
Graffito decorating involves scratching or engraving designs into your pottery and then filling in the grooves with paint. This way, you can create many artistic styles without worrying about any harm coming to your food.
Combinations
There are endless ways to combine glazes, paints, and sgraffito styles to create a wide variety of exciting and artistic pottery for your food-safe collection.
Stenciling
Stencils can also create more traditional designs that you can use as borders, patterns, or even your company logo on your pottery. Using stencils will allow you to create artistic and beautiful pottery that is also food-safe.
Slip-Trailing
Slip-trailing is a decorating method that involves using liquid clay slip to trail designs over pottery.
Once dried, these designs can be glazed to add color and style. This is a great way to get creative with your colors and styles while also ensuring that your food-safe collection has the quality it needs for safe use.
All of these ways can be used to decorate food-safe pottery. If you follow these guidelines, then you will be sure to make only the best quality food-safe pottery for your customers.
The Benefits of Using Food Safe Pottery
Some of the benefits of using food-safe pottery include the following.
Healthier Food
Food cooked in food-safe pottery will be healthier because you know there are no harmful chemicals or compounds in the clay. This means that your food will taste better, look better, and have more nutritional value when cooked inside high-quality food-safe pottery.
Fewer Chemicals
Chemicals like lead can leach into your food when cooked in other pottery types, including non-food-safe glazed pottery.
This means that using high-quality food-safe pottery will mean that you are getting better tasting, safer, and healthier foods than if they were prepared or served in another kind of container.
Ease of Use
Food-safe pottery is easy to use and care for because it does not need unique methods or chemicals to maintain its quality. You only need to make sure that your pottery is washed thoroughly before using it if you use it for food storage or transporting food, but after the washing, it will be safe for use.
Better Taste
Food prepared in food-safe pottery will have a much better taste than cooking in other types of pottery or containers.
The clay used to make these items has the perfect texture to allow the flavors of your foods to come out, so when you cook something inside high-quality food-safe pottery, you know that it will taste better than if it were cooked in another type of container.
More Durable
Food-safe pottery is made to be much more durable than other types of containers. This means that it can last for years, even decades, without breaking or chipping like cheaper types of food containers. This also makes them much safer because you know they will not crack or break while carrying them filled with piping hot food.
Sturdier
High-quality food-safe pottery is designed to be much sturdier than other types of pottery or containers, so you know that your bread, baked goods, and other items will stay in the container even if it falls over.
In addition, this makes them safe to stack on top of each other in your storage areas, so you won’t have to worry about them falling and damaging anything in your cabinets.
Better Design
Food-safe pottery is designed with a wide range of different styles and colors that allow you to make your food storage, serving, and even preparation areas truly one-of-a-kind with your tastes.
This also makes it much more attractive for people to use in their kitchens because the designs are indeed works of art that will enhance your kitchen decor.
Easy to Clean
Food-safe pottery is easy to clean and care for because it does not need special chemicals or procedures. All you have to do is use a regular sponge, brush, and soap before rinsing the items carefully and allowing them to dry completely before using them again.
More Affordable
Even though food-safe pottery is designed to last for many years, it will not completely break the bank like other types of kitchenware and dinnerware. This means that you can afford to make your food storage and service areas look great without having to spend a ton of money.
More Attractive
Food-safe pottery is attractive and enhances your kitchen decor even when put away in storage. This means that you can display some of these items to show off how they look while also using them to store and prepare food without any worries.
These are ten reasons why you should be using high-quality food-safe pottery to make your meals and store your food. It is the perfect way to protect your food from lead and other harmful additives, chemicals, and sharp utensils that could damage them.
Tips for Keeping Your Pottery Food Safe in Future
Pottery that is safe for use with food can be your best friend, but it requires some tender loving care. Make sure that you are taking the necessary steps to keep your pottery in tiptop shape so it will last as long as possible and always provide you with safe meals and snacks.
Store Pottery Safely
Make sure that you are always putting your pottery away in the proper places. If you leave it sitting on top of counters or tables, it can be damaged by moisture, and other objects, so make sure to keep it safe when not using it.
Clean Pots and Pans Before Use
It would help if you always cleaned your pottery before using it for food because this will prevent any bacteria, chemicals, or other items from getting into the food while you are cooking. If you want to get rid of germs after preparing raw meat in them, you can also boil water in the container for a few minutes.
Be Gentle
It would help if you always were gentle with your pottery while serving and storing food. This means that you should never bang containers on the table or counter, stack them on top of each other roughly, or let them fall or slide around while moving them.
Keep Pottery Away from Plastic
It is a good idea to keep your pottery away from other types of containers or surfaces, especially those that are made from plastic.
If there is a scratch in the pottery, you should not let it rub against these materials because it can absorb chemicals from them and become unsafe for use with food.
FAQ’s
Here are some of the most common questions people have about food-safe pottery.
How Do I Prevent My Food Safe Pottery from Scratching?
Always be gentle with your pottery when storing, serving, or transporting food, especially if it is starting to look dull. This means that you should never stack heavy items on top of it, use harsh scrubbing tools on the surface, or let metal utensils scrape against it.
What is the Best Way to Keep My Pottery Safe After I Prepare Meat in It?
Suppose you have just prepared meat in your pottery. In that case, it is highly recommended that you wash the items carefully before using them again to make sure any harmful chemicals are removed.
How Do I Keep My Food Safe Pottery from Absorbing Chemicals?
If your pottery has started to absorb chemicals, you can prevent it from happening in the future by boiling water for five minutes before making food in it.
Can You Stack Plates on Top of Each Other with The Proper Protection?
It is possible to stack food-safe plates, but you should always use a cloth or paper towel in between dishes to prevent them from rubbing against each other. This will help the pottery last longer and keep your family healthy while eating.
Conclusion
Using high-quality food-safe pottery is the best way to protect your food from lead and other harmful additives, chemicals, and sharp utensils. By following these simple tips, you can keep your pottery in tiptop shape for years to come and always enjoy safe meals and snacks.
