Lead in Slow Cooker Inserts?
So . . . I know it often produces less than chow-ish results, but I use my Crock-Pot once/week when school's in - on those nights where we're out 'til dinnertime, it beats takeout.
My knickers are in a twist today b/c a mother at school asked me if I'd heard about lead in the ceramic liners of slow cookers - I hadn't. Googling tonight, I see that's been an issue for a while . . . but I can't find any reliable, recent info.
Anyone here have the 411 on this and on alternatives? I'm willing to spend $$ on an All-Clad if the cast-aluminum is a good alternative . . . .
TIA!
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CLEANLIVINGUIDE
Sep 11, 2012 10:12 AM
This thread was hugely helpful for me as I was pouring over the horrible slow cookers options available online. After deciding that absolutely all of them were likely toxic - especially All-Clad for Chrissakes! I searched more specifically for stainless steel slow cookers and I found one possible gem.
So if any of you are still on the hunt for a non-toxic slow cooker, this seems to be the only one on the market that isn't lined with some toxic substance or other - it's simply stainless steel. However it sounds somewhat flawed: needs a heavier lid (i'm going to try buying a 12" cast iron one for it) and the heating temp seems a bit too high for prolonged slow cooking (min 225 F).
I'm also not thrilled about the fact that they don't disclose what type of core is contained below the steel - if any. This could mean uneven heat distribution.. burning, etc. Or an undesirable alloy.
I'm going to give it a try anyway - doesn't seem there are any other options. I need a cooker for broths and other foods without having to fret over a live burner going for 10+ hours.
I can repost if ya'll are still in the market.
Here's the pan - it's from a brand I've never heard of prior to this: Precise Heat (irony: sounds like temperature control is the one issue with their products! lol. or cry out loud.)
http://www.amazon.com/Precise-Heat-Surgical-Stainless-Electric/dp/B004YTOFRM/ref=cm_rdp_product
Here's a thread of a review... though I'm a a little suspicious that this reviewer is too invested:
http://www.amazon.com/review/R2C576CADL916U/ref=cm_cr_rev_detup_redir?_encoding=UTF8&asin=B004YTOFRM&cdForum=FxCP4MZQUJAIGA&cdPage=1&cdThread=Tx3227LERK78VWV&newContentID=Mx2RIQI0N54SVC7&newContentNum=3&store=kitchen#Mx86P1IC09PXET›3 Replies-
re: CLEANLIVINGUIDE
HomeGreens
Feb 11, 2013 08:51 AM
Hey there,
I'd love to hear of your experience with your stainless steel slow cooker (non toxic)? I'm researching for one, but so confused. Don't want lead, and don't want non-stick... :/Any tips?
thanks !!
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Has anyone tried the SPT Zisha Slow Cooker?
It is made of Zisha clay from China, which is supposed to be all-natural and have no harmful materials in it. I am still nervous about cooking in something made in China, but it is a good price, nice large size, and it makes some claims I wish I could believe. Can't decide if I want to try it:
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re: Lvm04
Good Zisha product do not contain lead. However most of the product in the market are not good or not good enough. The good Zisha raw material cost more than the lesser quality ones. I would be nervous about using this kind of cooking ware from China too. Stainless steel is OK, but ceramic and stoneware are different stories. Back not too long ago, their own media expose the lead problem with one of their major brand Zisha product. So to be safe, I stick with stainless steel, cast iron an French made dutch oven. You also need to be concerned about plates and bowls too. I tested stoneware and chinaware in my house back when I was pregnant. Old stoneware or chinaware from China definitely has high level of lead, then there was the Portuguese mugs. The non-reactive ones were from England (Johnson brothers) and the newer product from China.
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Presto makes an all purpose cooker - basically a slow cooker that goes up high enough to deep fat fry in it - in an unlined stainless steel version. It's a bit pricey, at about $80. (Now just wait I bet some diehard Adelle Davis fan will tell us how lethal SS is!).
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re: Rella
Chemicalkinetics
Feb 4, 2012 10:09 PM
Well, you have to cook on "something". Unfortunately, people always claim "something" is toxic. Tell me one cooking material has not been considered toxic. Teflon? Yes. Stainless steel? Yes. Cast iron? Yes. Aluminum? Yes. Clay? Yes. Ceramic? Yes.
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I never could find an acceptable answer to the lead question either. My slow cooker has been used only once or twice once I learned of the lead issue. That said, I still love the convenience of the slow cooker, but I have found myself feeling better about using the pressure cooker as my time saver for stews and the like. Has anyone sent their rival crocks to be lead tested? Mine are white liners from the 90's.
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gansu girl
Jan 13, 2011 10:03 AM
I have an update - I emailed Rival and All-Clad - Rival said that their crocks conform w/FDA reqs. for acceptable amts. of lead. All-Clad says their crocks are "lead free." I also asked All-Clad what they coat their cast-aluminum liner with to make it non-stick and they didn't answer the question - just said that it's made from cast-aluminum - ? Not helpful. I also emailed Cuisinart and haven't received a reply.
So there you have it - WWYD? I might replace my older Crock-Pot w/an All-Clad - been wanting a programmable slow cooker anyway . . . .
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re: gansu girl
Chemicalkinetics
Jan 13, 2011 10:13 AM
"Rival said that their crocks conform w/FDA reqs. for acceptable amts. of lead"
Every cookware sold in America passes that requirement. Technically the requirement is not about how much lead is used, about how much lead leaks out of the cookware. California Prop 65 (I think) has an tougher retriction on lead than the FDA one, so cookware sold in California has to demonstrate that as well.
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re: Chemicalkinetics
gansu girl
Jan 14, 2011 10:13 AM
Right, I understand that all cookware sold in the U.S. is *supposed* to conform to that req. and indeed, CA has tougher restrictions, but this controversy started after crocks were found to be leaching lead in excess of acceptable amounts. What Rival's said to me is that they're in compliance - whether we choose to believe them is another matter. There is a big issue w/oversight for these kinds of requirements. If you're like me, you're skeptical about "acceptable amounts" of toxins like lead, and about profit motives and whether the FDA really has the welfare of the population top of mind at all times. Lots of things once pronounced to be A-OK for human consumption have turned out to be crappy for us, and lots of food that supposedly's produced in OK ways ends up being contaminated with one thing or another, or manufactured using not-OK ingredients.
On the other hand, if I followed every hunch and suspicion out to its conclusion, I'd make myself a maniac. So I do what I can while trying to maintain sanity at the same time - which is why I'll likely go back to using my slow cooker, or perhaps buy an updated one b/c I think that oversight and third party testing has been stepped up a bit in recent years.
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re: gansu girl
Chemicalkinetics
Jan 14, 2011 11:10 AM
Just buy the ugliest slow cooker or crockpot then. Lead is added to paint and glaze for bright and beautiful color, which is why a good solid percentage of lipsticks have lead in them. White or dull colors tend to have little lead added to them.
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re: Chemicalkinetics
Kinetics, that is assuming that the crock is made from white clay. Mine is definitely made from brown clay, like many of the early Rivals.
I don't think that is a guarantee, as many tagines from North Africa contain too much lead, and are a natural brown colour. (There is also white or pale grey clay, just as natural, but I've never seen tagines made from it).
Ambimom discusses an Italian ceramic containing lead. While it is inaccurate that lead is permitted anywhere in the EU (and I'm sure EU rules nowadays are stricter than US (or Canadian) rules in the days of the earliest crockpots) she does have a point about oversight.
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re: lagatta
Chemicalkinetics
Jan 14, 2011 05:13 PM
Yes, it is not a guarantee. However, one of the reasons, lead is added to paint is to brighten the color along with increasing stability. In fact, lead paints were once prized and people paid premium for lead paint in their home. Of course, like you said, it does not mean every dull color paints have no lead in them.
Lead is not outlawed. Its leech level has a restriction, but you can put as much lead as you desire as long as the leach level is under the guideline. In this sense, I would argue that lead is permitted for cookware in Europe. I also not sure why you said EU has stricter regulation. I know for a fact that Canada has the toughest lead restriction for toys, and California prop 65 has one of the toughest regulation guidelines for lead in cookware. As far as I know, EU regulation on lead is much more confusing and non-cohesive.
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re: gansu girl
greygarious
Jan 16, 2011 05:08 PM
That All-Clad avoided answering your question would make me reluctant to buy their product.
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If you find it that much of a concern, you can test individual pieces for lead. Test kits are readily available in hardware stores, Harbor Freight, etc.
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re: sueatmo
I suppose you could send your slow cooker off for testing. There are labs that test glazes for potters (I am one - not a lab, a potter) so I suppose they could test for you. Or you could do a standard potter's leach test which is to place a slice of lemon on your piece. Leave it for several hours, remove it, and see if the glazed surface has discolored. If so, it may leach whatever chemicals the glaze was made of. Of course, even if it did, if the glaze didn't contain lead or cadmium or some other ingredient of concern in the first place, then there isn't a problem.
Also, the All-Clad slow cooker you mention with the aluminum insert is covered in a non-stick surface - which to many is a worse concern than ceramic inserts.
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re: Leepa
Here's another alternative by West Bend, for those of you who don't want to blow a good portion of your paycheck on the All-Clad slow cooker:
http://www.amazon.com/West-Bend-84915...
It's pretty ugly, I have to admit - nowhere near as attractive as the All-Clad - but I've been pretty happy with the performance of mine. It also has a non-stick coating, but my understanding is that the greatest health concerns involved in non-stick coatings are when they are used at very high heats (not low heats as in slow cookers).
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re: paraque
Paraque, I had posted a separate question about finding a used slow cooker or alternatively, a new cooker recommended by a Chowhounder. http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/758912 You said you've been happy with it. Have you found it to run too hot? What if you need to be away all day and cook something for 10 or more hours? Thanks.
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re: goodeatsgal
I have found the settings on the West Bend slow cooker to be VERY accurate. The setting dial runs from 1-5, with 1 being the lowest heat and 5 the hottest heat. At 1, it really just keeps things warm for serving. I usually use 3, which provides enough heat to cook a pot of beans (without pre-soaking) if I put them on at 9:00 am and come back at 6:00 pm. At 3, the pot will not boil (every other modern slow cooker I've used boils even on the lowest settings). However, if you want a boil, 5 will do it.
I imagine if you want to cook for 10 or more hours, 2 or 2 1/2 would work out for you. Like I said - I've been very pleased with it's range of performance on different settings. I will say that it's not thrilling to use - it really is pretty ugly and feels kind of unsubstantial. It also looks like it holds a lot less than it really does (I often will cook a whole 3 lb. chicken in it). But it works well. You can put the pot on the stove if you want to sear or finish something off, too.
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re: sueatmo
Yes, I wonder about the efficacy of these tests.
http://www.amazon.com/First-Alert-LT1...
As many good reviews as bad on this First Alert LT1 Premium Lead Test Kit
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re: Rella
I bought a 3M lead test kit and just today tested two of my slow cooker ceramic inserts; one the 70's 3qt crockpot, and two, my new Frigidaire Professional slow cooker.
Another test was on the largest Emile Henry tagine bottom part where the cooking takes place.
My tests proved negative for lead. This test does not include a test for cadmium.
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This was new to me so I did an online search, thinking it might be an urban myth. Apparently one consumer reporter in Utah tested both dinnerware and slow cooker liners for lead. Too much lead was found in some of the dinnerware, and some of the ceramic liners. I can't find any info online about which brands have the unacceptable amounts of lead in them. The original story which apparently dated from 2004, is no longer onine. This issue has also been addressed in a previous CH thread.
The info I run into online is all hearsay and urban myth-appearing. I don't know how to evaluate it. I hope someone on CH has better knowledge of this issue.
When you are purchasing any ceramic product, you should assure yourself that the product has been mfg. with lead free glazes. I have a number of hand-thrown vessels in my kitchen made by a potter who is careful about this issue. I did not even think that there might be too much lead in my Cuisinart Slow Cooker! I also admit that I don't trust stuff from China, where I assume my cooker was made.
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re: sueatmo
gansu girl
Jan 8, 2011 03:01 AM
yes, sueatmo - that's why I posted here - after some serious on-line research I couldn't find more than you mention . . . hopefully someone has an idea - or yes, Chemicalkinetics, that's what I might do (although not sure what that cast aluminum liner might be treated with to make it non-stick - need to look into that, too).
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re: gansu girl
Ambimom
Jan 8, 2011 04:30 AM
A year ago, I purchased a ceramic baker that was manufactured in Italy. The very first time I baked something in it, the ceramic leached a white powder. I discovered that it was lead. Researching the whole incident, I also discovered that ceramics made or sold by American companies are prohibited from having lead content. Elsewhere in the world, this is not true.
As for using plastic liners, that seems counter-intuitive. Plastic poly-vinyl chloride is a helluva alternative that'll give you cancer instead of lead poisoning.-
re: Ambimom
I agree about the plastic liners--counterintuitive, and just not the way I want to cook.
American companies might be regulated as to lead amounts in cookware. But if they contract to Chinese mfgs, and they stipulate what they require, the Chinese can still take shortcuts. The recent news is replete with this very problem.
That is what is worrisome to me. It may be that American companies skip testing the products they market, and so are surprised when testing finds lead or other chemicals in the product.
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re: sueatmo
gansu girl
Jan 8, 2011 05:37 AM
exactly, sueatmo! already planning to NOT use my current Crock Pot this week and it's distressing me . . . .
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re: Maverick8901
See my above information about the testing kit I bought and tested just a few days ago.
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re: John E.
No, I do not necessarily take as written in stone the results from the testing kit, any more than I believe that aluminum has been debunked, nor that cooking with plastic is safe because it wouldn't be on the market and ga-zllions of other similar things.
Nor that corgii's fly :-))My mother taught me to be circumspect.
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Chemicalkinetics
Jan 7, 2011 04:56 PM
You can get the one with a cast aluminum insert if it really bothers you
http://www.all-clad.com/collections/Electrics/SlowCooker.htm?index=
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If you're concerned about this, buy some plastic slow-cooker liners at your grocery store -- makes clean-up a snap, too.
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re: pikawicca
gansu girl
Jan 8, 2011 02:54 AM
txs. for this, but I'm actually more worried about cooking in plastic than in a ceramic liner w/traces of lead - as plastics heat they can leach chemicals into your food, too - and really, I don't find washing out the slow cooker to be a big deal.
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re: gansu girl
John E.
Jan 12, 2011 09:45 AM
The plastics used in the liners are meant to take the heat unlike cling wrap or ziplock bags. If you are concerned, buy an older model that was made in America. There have been rules about lead in eating and cooking utensils in the U.S. for decades.
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