Permanently Antibacterial "NATURALLY" The presence of anti-microbial chemicals in camphor laurel cutting boards raises the question of safety with regard to those chemicals contaminating food. The concentration & types of compounds in camphor wood can vary from tree to tree & between different parts of a tree.

In feneral terms the following compounds are present:

Any of these substances can be toxic in purified form, but there is no evidence to suggest that food contact with Camphor laurel wood (particularly after curing) would produce any adverse effects. There is no guarantee, as there cannot be with any substance that a particular individual will not be allergic to any of the chemicals in timber, but most of them commonly occur in foods & confectionery.

Lavender, for instance, contains camphor, limonene, eugenol, pinene & linalool. Eucalyptus oil is predominantly cineole.

The most toxic of the above is safrole. However, it is a reasonably common constituent of plants.
It is known to occur in about 50 other species including angelica, sassafras, nutmeg, star anise, cinnamon, cacao and black pepper. Other food plants containing these compounds include: Bay leaves (cineole & eugenol), cloves (eugenol), cinnamon (eugenol, cinnamaldehyde), coriander (linalool, pinene, & camphor), peppermint (pinene & limonene), sage (cineole, pinene & camphor), rosemary (cineole & pinene) [5,6,7,]. These Herbs & spices have long been used as preservatives.

Copyright. Eco Furniture and timber.2002