Is any wood finish REALLY food-safe?

It's all a bunch of advertising nonsense designed to sell you stuff! Here are the REAL food-safe finishes for cutting boards, bowls, etc...
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[StumpyNubs]

READ WHAT THE FDA SAYS ON THE MATTER BELOW►

►If you wish to save some reading, here is Fine Woodworking Magazine's take on the regulations I just cited: "According to the FDA database of approved ingredients for finishes and adhesives, all modern unpigmented finishes (ones that don’t contain lead, mercury or toxic colorants) are technically considered food safe IF they are applied in reasonable amounts and allowed to cure properly. The FDA’s list of approved ingredients includes every solvent, hardener, drier, oil and resin commonly available on the market. So in a way, any finish that only uses these ingredients and that cures properly according to the FDA’s tests can be considered food safe."

[jefffaircloth]

I realize this video is old but this shows the difference time can point out. "It's just plastic..." We are just learning the dangers of ingesting microplastics into our digestive systems. Cutting a plastic finish is going to introduce small amounts of plastic into your body. I don't know what the safest finish may be, but it isn't something that cures into plastic that is then cut up, thereby getting into your foods.

[DeDraconis]

"And you turned out fine, right?"
I didn't come here to be attacked, James.

[sboh]

"Mineral oil is safe to consume right out of the bottle... as long as you don't mind violent diarrhea."

Your dry delivery kills me.

[JayOfBurn]

2:09 "Can plastics harm you? ... Sure, if you eat a set of tuperware bowls..."

That cracked me up.

[johnmanning]

A person must be very careful to avoid drinking anything they would not wish expelled through their nose while watching any of your videos.

[toysoldier]

"I'm not a nut.." Have you even watched your older videos? lmao

[daveengstrom]

There is nothing as refreshing on a hot day as a glass of shellac with a twist of lemon.

[Dwayne_Bearup]

Great video, as usual, although I'd like to point out that while lac resin is secreted by bugs it is not actually poop. Long story short, lac bugs suck sap from trees, and most of that sap is converted by the bug into lac, which is secreted by various glands on the insect's body so that it can harden into a protective shell all around the bug. "Droppings" are just that - a waste product that most creatures drop and leave behind because it serves no purpose. So, lac is more like hair than poop - a substance produced by a creature as a secondary protection from the elements.
But lac tastes better on jelly beans :)

[johnjingleheimersmith]

As a food scientist I can tell you about nut oils. These oils, and in general most oils, are purified or processed to a point where any proteins (the stuff that you would actually have an allergic reaction to if you have nut allergies for instance) would either be virtually nonexistent or denatured to a point your immune system wouldn't interact with it, thus no allergic reaction. This is highly refined oils, not cold pressed essential oils. Essential oils would likely give you a reaction because they aren't processed to remove anything nor are they heated.

[coreygrua]

Dean James Hamilton of Harvard Woodworking University with yet another graduate level course designed “to make you a better woodworker.” Works for me. Thank you James.

[Gatsby]

"And you turned out fine right?"
Ummm I'm a woodworker and we are all a little off.

[ggbuck]

Great commentary on wood finishes, your sarcasm is epic. Never stop.

[stuartmclellan]

Good down to earth advice from an obviously knowledgeable and experienced woodworker. Thanks.

[gordroberts]

Thanks for the reminder, I remain amazed and how passionately some folks will defend products carrying the food safe label will defend said products as the only option for anything that might come in contact with food or children. Also thanks for the safety reminder at the end. Cheers from BC!

[Bravo]

Lots of options out there. Personally I use my own mix, a 'bees wax and walnut oil' finish for cutting boards, bowls, wood trays, spoons, utensils etc.

[patchesofgreen]

I really appreciate the one month time frame. Very helpful. I have a wood beer mug that has a coat of epoxy. I've been drinking out of it for years and the beer has damaged my liver way more than the trace amounts of plastic that I have ingested from it have. Great vid as usual.

[trevorallen]

I used 100% tung oil cut with citrus solvent on my butcher block countertops a few weeks ago . Outstanding so far, I'll keep you posted.

[danielterk]

I worry about the damage to the finish that will result with a well used cutting board. I have many wood and plastic boards and after a lot of use there is clear damage to the surface. So while contact with a hardened finish may be safe, after enough use that finish is going to start to come off in small pieces and get into food, and while likely small in quantity I think this is the real issue. Not so much a problem with serving ware that will not need to withstand abrasions. Washing and contact is one thing, but repeated cutting is different.

[babounous]

I don't remember if it was in a print magazine or another YouTuber, but the comment was "given enough time, ALL finishes are food safe."