A cutting board is one of those mundane items you don’t pay much attention to. But you use it almost every day – whether it’s to slice bread, chop vegetables, prepare meat, grate cheese, or anything else involving food.
So could it be worth taking a closer look at your chopping board? Given its central role in food preparation, the humble chopping board plays a much bigger role in food safety than you might realise.
There have also been discussions on social media and online forums around what kind of chopping board we should be using. Most people use either plastic or wooden chopping boards, both of which come with pros and cons in terms of food safety.
But there are other types of chopping boards out there, including glass, marble and stainless steel. So which material is best?
We delve into the nitty-gritty of chopping boards, with expert advice and scientific studies to help you make the right decision for your home.
What kind of chopping board should I use?
The most popular materials for chopping boards in the average home are plastic and wood. Both get the job done, but there are some considerations you may want to look at before deciding on which is best for you.
Plastic, not so fantastic
Plastic chopping boards have come under scrutiny in recent years as more research around microplastics and its impact on the human body have come to light.
A 2023 study published in the journal Environmental Science and Technology found that plastic chopping boards have the potential to release significant amounts of microplastics into our food.
Researchers found that, as we chop ingredients like vegetables on plastic chopping boards, the “effects of chopping styles on microplastic release became evident”. They estimated that people are being exposed to anywhere between 7.4g to 50.7g of microplastics when using a polyethylene chopping board, and 49.5g of microplastics from a polypropylene chopping board.
“This study identifies plastic chopping boards as a substantial source of microplastics in human food, which requires careful attention,” the researchers concluded.
Some people believe that plastic is easier to keep clean, reducing the risk of cross-contamination and food-borne bacteria that are a major cause for food-borne diseases.
However, a 2015 study found no “significant differences” between the microbiological status of plastic and wooden chopping boards that had been contaminated with a “meat-egg mixture” and then cleaned according to manufacturers’ instructions.
Beth Winters, technical manager at food innovation centre The Food WorksSW, tells Yahoo UK she would not personally recommend plastic chopping boards. “Plastic boards are prone to developing scratches, where bacteria proliferate, and they can deteriorate easily,” she explains.
Wood is a mood
Wooden chopping boards are a popular choice in households, although Winters warns that they are “considered to pose greater risk of cross contamination, as they are more porous”.
In a professional kitchen, it is also considered best practice not to work with wood “as there is a foreign body risk through splintering”, she says.
But there’s good news for wooden chopping board users. Despite their less-than-sparkling reputation, a 2016 study found that plastic chopping boards carry bacteria that can cause foodborne illnesses at significantly higher levels than wooden chopping boards.
There is some evidence that shows this could be down to antibacterial properties in wood. While it’s true that certain types of wood, like maple and teak, do have natural antibacterial properties, scientists warn that the crevices and nicks created by knives on wooden chopping boards can harbour bacteria.
Cleaning your wooden chopping board thoroughly between uses is highly advised to keep bacteria at bay. Winters advises washing your wooden chopping board in warm, soapy water, using “the lather and physical motion… to detach the bacteria from the surface of the board”.
“People should be advised to immediately and thoroughly wash the chopping board after preparing raw food,” she adds.
Potential alternatives to consider
Less commonly used chopping board materials include stainless steel, but Winters personally recommends this material as a food preparation surface that can be completely cleaned of bacteria.
“Alternatively, aluminium, ceramic or glass are considered suitable hygienic materials in the home,” she says.
However, there are some drawbacks to these alternative materials, too. According to Wirecutter, any material harder than the steel of your knife’s blade can cause it to dull quickly.
This means that chopping boards made from glass, granite, marble or ceramic can blunt your knives much quicker compared to using wooden or plastic chopping boards, increasing the need to sharpen your knives more frequently.
Should I have multiple chopping boards?
Some people may opt to have multiple chopping boards for different purposes, which can reduce the risk of harmful cross-contamination, Winters says.
“Best practice would be to have three boards, one for raw meat, fish or poultry, one for fruits and vegetables, and one for ready-to-eat foods,” she advises.
This can also be useful for ensuring people with allergies are safe. “For households that are preparing food for people with allergies, the food handler may also choose to prepare the food materials containing the allergen on a different chopping board.”
But if you don’t have the space for multiple chopping boards, don’t fret. Practising good food hygiene will protect you from nasty illnesses like food poisoning, so make sure you wash and disinfect the surface of your chopping board after use, and between food items.
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