natural PLA is foodsafe right?

[lance-greene 7]

i knew foodsafe filament was a thing, but just saw that natural PLA is supposed to be foodsafe as well, just want to make sure, going to print me a giant bolter round to use as a cup

 

[IRobertI 520]

You'd have to check with the manufacturer, it's not inherently food safe just because it's listed as "natural PLA". You don't know how it was processed/stored/etc. Also, what about the rest of your machine? Can you be sure that everything is safe in there? Personally I would never use a printed item to eat/drink out of, I value my health more than that.

 

[yellowshark 153]

Probably not if it has not been certified. Taulman has a number of nylon filaments that have been certified by the FDA

 

[Dim3nsioneer 557]

I once asked Colorfabb a similar question about XT and got the answer that the material itself might be food safe but looses this safety if printed on a printer with a hotend not entirely made from metal. Which is the case for Ultimakers.

 

[Daid 306]

I once asked Colorfabb a similar question about XT and got the answer that the material itself might be food safe but looses this safety if printed on a printer with a hotend not entirely made from metal. Which is the case for Ultimakers.

 

Same goes for U-PET.

The PLA we use does not have the food safe certification from our manufacturers. (Not even natural PLA)

This topic on the RepRap forums has quite a bit of info on food safety:

http://forums.reprap.org/read.php?1,164077,168351

 

[tinydancer 0]

The problem with using food safe materials is that unless the surface is absolutely smooth, any gaps in the layering can physically harbor bacteria. That being said, ColorFabb's XT-COPOLYESTER seems to be food safe.

http://colorfabb.com/xt-copolyester

 

[fluxline 0]

just because the crevices in it and not being able to put it in the dishwasher, i wouldn't make any cups and things to eat with for my kids. i did make a toothbrush holder for them out of 'natural' pla. it was wet a lot, rinsed, toothpaste spills, ... after about a month it had a coloured stuff in the crevices that was not toothpaste. chucked it out.

 

[area0404 0]

Natural PLA is food safe, yes. Additives during the filament production and your 3D printer itself is probably not. Lubricants or other additives like mould release agent (unlikely but who knows) or lubricants may be highly toxic. Don't suggest you to let your print job make direct contact with whatever you're preparing to eat.

 

[ccw1984 1]

Perhaps we can look into food safe coatings, ie. epoxy resins or such.

http://www.masterbond.com/properties/food-safe-adhesives-sealants-coatings-encapsulation-compounds

http://www.masterbond.com/tds/ep30hv

http://blog.adafruit.com/2013/05/16/3d-printing-and-food-safety-3dthursday/

http://www.nanocare-ag.com/kunststoffe_edelmetalle/

http://www.actega.com/terra/products/foodsafe-coatings.html