Is it safe to use aluminium saucepans, utensils and foil for cooking food?
It’s best not to use aluminium products to cook or store foods that are highly acidic, such as: • tomatoes • rhubarb • cabbage • many soft fruits This is because these sorts of food can acquire an aluminium taint that can affect their taste, especially if foods are stored in aluminium containers for long periods of time. One study found that around 20% of aluminium in the diet came from the use of aluminium cookware and foil, but other studies have shown that the use of aluminium cookware contributes little to our dietary intakes of aluminium. Otherwise, aluminium is highly resistant to corrosion caused by different foods. Cooking foods in aluminium containers increases the aluminium content in the food by less than 1 milligram per kilogram of food for about half of the foods that have already been studied, and less than 10 milligrams per kilogram for 85% of those foods.
