Fake Foods Must Be Fda-approved To Be Safe For Use In Restaurants

Until recently, no well-appointed home lacked a bowl of wax fruit as a dining table centerpiece. And, although not quite as popular as they used to be, many homes still display faux apples, grapes and bananas as décor, though they are no longer made of wax. We generally see display foods used in grocery stores, restaurants, and coffee houses, but they are also used by physicians to teach balanced nutrition, by interior designers who stage homes, and by the entertainment industry. These food props are more common than you might expect, and are used for a multitude of business purposes.

Modern fake foods are carefully manufactured with plastics, most notably vinyl chloride which can withstand heat, light and moisture without breaking down. The reproduction process is relatively long and complicated, and starts with a silicone mold of the food to be imitated. Color is then precisely matched in liquid plastic, then poured into the mold and heated until it becomes solid. In some cases, a clay prototype is sculpted and painted, with each garnish, condiment or other addition separately and painstakingly manufactured to make the finished product as realistic as it can be.

Practically all display foods are designed by hand, an art that was perfected in Japan after World War II, when foreigners began to arrive to help rebuild the country. Because these foreigners were unable to read the menus, candle makers and other artisans created paraffin duplicates of the dishes offered at restaurants, allowing customers to see what their food would look like. Wax continued to be used as the main ingredient of food props until the mid-'80s, when more durable materials became popular.

You wouldn't expect the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to have an interest in fake food, but the fact is that even if it is not ingested, many of the chemicals used in its manufacture can leach out and taint any real food in its proximity. For this reason, any food props used in grocery stores, restaurants or other areas that contain real edibles must pass FDA inspection.

It is therefore of utmost importance that careful attention be paid to the source of any fake food display. Most of the products made overseas contain lead paint and other contaminants; although these fake foods typically cost less than their high-quality, more expensive counterparts, the savings are not worth the danger. Purchasing fake foods from a reputable company whose product has been approved by the FDA is the best way to ensure the safety of consumers and should be the primary concern of those who use food props for any display.

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