Is Yew wood too poisonous for a chopping board?

[philb88]

Is yew wood itself too poisonous for a chopping board?
As I've got a few pieces that are waney edge but solus centre planks!

Phil

 

[Jonzjob]

This may help you decide? It is from Chas' sticky on the turning forum.

http://htmlimg4.scribdassets.com/5tygen ... f5/000.jpg

It came out very small on my screen, but it wil zoom in OK. Personally, I wouldn't use it.

 

[woodbloke]

Is yew wood itself too poisonous for a chopping board?
As I've got a few pieces that are waney edge but solus centre planks!

Phil

Short answer...nope. All parts of the tree are toxic - Rob

 

[philb88]

Thanks guys!
I thought this might be the case! Maybe they'll have to just be display boards!!

PHIL

 

[mtt.tr]

Didnt know it was poisonous

Great list

 

[Harbo]

Can be used to make Pharmaceutical Drugs - a friend of mine sells his yew hedge trimmings each year for that.

Rod

 

[bugbear]

I think this may be health and safety gone mad:

Going to the source document for some of the info in that table:

http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/wis30.pdf

(note the source)

We read:

Toxicity
In bulk, wood is unlikely to give rise to toxic effects. The hazardous forms that may give rise to health risks are:
● dust;
● sap, latex or lichens associated with a wood.

So (unless I'm severely misreading) you could make a chopping board out of damn near any timber you liked.

BugBear

 

[theartfulbodger]

I wouldn't.

Yew is used to make longbows, and they're pretty dangerous #-o (hammer)

 

[Jonzjob]

I wouldn't reccomend oleander either. Even burning the wood on a barbie is a no no, big time. Even cutting it we have to wear gloves.

As for yew, best not to use dusty boards I suppose?

"dermatitis, systemic effects eg headache, blood pressure drop, cardiac effects"

 

[wyldpuss]

You think wood is dangerous! A drug I was recently prescribed came with 31 printed lines of serious side effects!

Roy.

 

[Muina]

Yew's an incredible wood, the only part of the tree that isn't directly toxic is the red aril surrounding the seed (best not to try though), yet there's a substance in the bark, leaves and wood called taxol that can stop the spread of certain cancers and it's been used for years. The only problem is that in the tree it's in tiny quantities so you need the bark from I think 6 trees to treat just one patient (if I remember right).

It's also a rejuvenating tree, growth from one seed can last forever! Basically the branches droop down to the floor and roots grow from there, then the branch separates from the rest of the tree and so starts a 'new' tree.

But as for using it as a chopping board, I'd say it's a BIG no. In fact using it for any direct food contact is not advised.

Anthony

 

[Tetsuaiga]

Personally it wouldnt worry me. Its not like you're eating the wood, i often eat the berries but of course not the seed.

 

[Bm101]

Really?!? What do they taste like? You're a braver man than me.
As far as I remember the old celts thought the Yew was some sort of sacred tree. It was one of seven. The Oak being the most important. But the Yew was apparently something a bit shady, connected to the dead, that's why apparently you see a lot of Yew trees in Christian burial grounds to this day. I have no empirical research to back this up of course, something I read in a book many years ago when I was young and trusting of the written word. The celts didn't write anything down so it's all a bit hazy I guess.
Personally I'm with Muina. Why take the chance?
It's no chance that most prescriptive drugs are derived at source at least from plants. My Mrs works at GSK on a derivative of digitalis (foxglove). Fine line between use and abuse of plant attributes throughout human history. Did you know for example that rubbing the juice from the leaves from Horse chestnut on your skin is a sun block? Also, scrunch the leaves up in water and you can form a lathery soap thats pretty good for washing. All drugs are synthesised from plant compounds at some point in their evolution. God only knows what our ancestors knew about plant properties that is lost to us now.

 

[JakeS]

God only knows what our ancestors knew about plant properties that is lost to us now.

How to cure MRSA, apparently!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-no ... e-32117815

 

[woodpig]

Personally it wouldnt worry me. Its not like you're eating the wood, i often eat the berries but of course not the seed.

Yes me too, they taste lovely. Our old house had about twenty small yew bushes in the garden so I used to eat quite a few when the berries appeared.

 

[duncanh]

Personally it wouldnt worry me. Its not like you're eating the wood, i often eat the berries but of course not the seed.

Yes me too, they taste lovely. Our old house had about twenty small yew bushes in the garden so I used to eat quite a few when the berries appeared.

I also sometimes eat the berries. They're wonderfully tasty, kind of like a sweet raspberry but not quite. They have a strange gelatinous texture but not unpleasant and well worth trying. Just don't swallow the seed.

 

[AJB Temple]

Honestly chaps...Yew seeds are known to be seriously toxic and easting the berries risks seed ingestion. Even if you are careful, the child seeing you may not be aware that crunching the seed (which otherwise passes through the body harmlessly) can be fatal at the level of 3 seeds (for an adult). Why take an unnecessary risk?

All parts of the Yew contain toxins. It is quite obviously unsuitable as a chopping board. Get some nice walnut or maple!

 

[Racers]

Alcohol is poisonous if you consume enough.

Black walnut toxicity http://ohioline.osu.edu/hyg-fact/1000/1148.html

Pete

 

[AJB Temple]

Pete - you know full well the point I am making. The established practice for chipping boards is to use wood from trees where the fruit is edible by humans. Even water kills if over consumed, but the point is that chopping boards are used to prepare food that can be consumed by anyone, and the cook will not necessarily know what allergies or sensitivities they have. There is simply no sense in using materials that are known to have significant toxicity.

Perhaps I should add that I used to own a restaurant and perhaps have a heightened awareness of food safety and the draconian rules surrounding it. which may make me paranoid ;-) There is a lot of research around into what constitutes food safe surfaces. Personally for domestic use I prefer end grain maple as it is kind to very sharp knife blades (the wood is not too hard), self healing, and reasonably durable. Canadian hard rock maple end grain is traditional. A lot of the Italian makers to the trade are using Acacia. I use these for meat and fish prep: http://www.butchersequipment.co.uk/pro- ... -40-x-10cm. Weighs a ton but very good!

 

[Phil Pascoe]

I did read somewhere that if you ate 3 1/2 oz. of yew sawdust it would make you very ill.