FAQ: Are All Stainless Steel Food Grade?
Blog | January 15th, 2019Walk into any commercial kitchen and your eyes will be met with stainless steel appliances and utensils in every corner of the room. Stainless steel has become a stalwart material for any industries that work with and deal with food. Stainless steel is a durable metal that also provides the added benefit of being ‘food grade’, which is to say ‘safe’ when dealing with food that is to be consumed. With that being said, we need to discuss what kinds of stainless steel materials ARE actually food grade.
Stainless Steel: Food Grade Metal for Kitchen Use
If you’ve spent any time looking up stainless steel, you’ve likely been greeted by a wide range of different numbers acting as descriptors. Stainless steel comes in a variety of different ‘grades’. These grades differentiate from one another based on what they are capable of doing and handling. For food grade stainless steel, there is actually a wide selection to choose from. Let’s go ahead and look at the different grades of stainless steel so that we can outline which are ideal for kitchen use.
1) 304 Stainless Steel – The most common of all stainless steel grades. 304 is used in kitchens throughout the world and can be identified by circling a pair of number formations: 18/8 and 18/10. 18/8 and 18/10 stand for the mixture of chromium and nickel that can be found in the metal itself. The more nickel in the metal, the more durable it is.
2) 316 Stainless Steel – This grade of stainless steel is revered for being more resistant to corrosion. 316 stainless steel is food grade but often found in areas outside of the kitchen including marine applications.
3) 416 Stainless Steel – Considered to be ‘cutlery grade’, 416 Stainless Steel is resistant to corrosion while durable enough for heavy use inside of the kitchen.
4) 420 Stainless Steel – This grade of stainless steel is also ideal for kitchen use. Also known as ‘surgical steel’, 420 stainless steel will contain molybdenum which helps to fuel corrosion resistance.
5) 200 Series – Finally, you’ll also find 200 series stainless steel used in the food industry. 200-grade stainless steel will most commonly end up being used as a food storage container. This grade of steel isn’t as effective to use due to the fact that it is less durable and less corrosion resistant.
As you can see, there are many different kinds of food grade stainless steel options available for your kitchen. Whether you need food grade containers or food grade pots and pans, there are stainless steel options available to you.
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