Chopping Board Colours: Your Complete Guide

              

Chopping Board Colours: Your Complete Guide

Visit any commercial kitchen or catering equipment store and you’ll see a rainbow of chopping boards. But what do the different colours mean? In this article, our experts explain how the colours of chopping boards help reduce the risk of cross-contamination and what each colour is used for. 

What do the different chopping board colours mean? We’ve outlined the chopping board colour standard below: 

Commercial kitchens employ a system of colour-coded chopping boards to prevent cross-contamination and uphold food safety standards effectively. Each colour is designated explicitly for particular food groups, allowing kitchen staff to quickly and easily identify the appropriate board for different types of food. For instance, a red board is typically reserved for raw meats, while a blue board might be used for fish, and a green board is generally designated for fruits and vegetables. This systematic approach not only streamlines food preparation but also significantly reduces the risk of transferring harmful bacteria and allergens between food items. By implementing this colour-coding system, kitchens can maintain a higher level of hygiene and safety, ultimately protecting the health of consumers and the integrity of the culinary environment.

What Do the Chopping Board Colours Mean?

The colour of the chopping board indicates the type of food product (or group) being prepared on it. Not only does this act as a cue for visual communication, but it also helps reduce the risk of cross-contamination within a kitchen. Colour-coded boards fall within ‘The Four Cs’ of food hygiene, which you can learn more about in one of our recent blogs - ‘What Are The Basic Food Hygiene Rules?’

There is the option to use a different colour-coded system, provided that this is outlined in detail in your Food Safety Management System, and your staff are made aware of the deviation from the standard. Most kitchens, however, use the same universal guidelines, which we’ve outlined below:

Red Chopping Board: Raw Meat & Poultry

The red chopping board is used for raw meats, including chicken, beef, pork, turkey, pheasant, and other meats from the same family. By keeping raw meat separate, you’ll reduce the risk of spreading Salmonella or E-coli to ready-to-eat foods. 

Because some meat can be eaten raw (such as beef), you must avoid cross-contamination from meats that are not safe to eat raw. To do so, you must wash your chopping board between preparing different types of meat. 

Blue Chopping Board: Raw Rish (Including Shellfish)

Blue chopping boards are used to prepare fish that is about to be cooked. Raw fish includes fin and shellfish, as well as prawns, shrimp, muscles, clams, oysters, salmon, cod, and more.

The reason that raw fish is prepared on a separate chopping board from raw meat is that they each hold different bacteria and therefore pose various threats to one another. The same applies to the types of fish you are preparing, which is why you should wash or change your board between preparing different kinds of fish. 

Yellow Chopping Board: Cooked Meat, Poultry, & Fish

The yellow chopping boards can be used for cooked meat, poultry and fish. Interestingly, fish that is going to be served raw, such as fish found in sushi and sashimi, is safe to prepare on a yellow chopping board as it is classified as ‘ready to eat’. In this scenario, some sushi chefs prefer to use a black chopping board. 

Green Chopping Board: Washed Vegetables & Fruit

The green and brown boards are often confused due to their similar uses. The green chopping board is most commonly used for fruits and salad vegetables, such as lettuce, cucumber, and tomatoes. Other vegetables can be chopped on a green board, provided that they have been washed thoroughly (this is particularly important for root vegetables that contain traces of soil).

Brown Chopping Board: Unwashed Vegetables

The brown board is generally used to prepare unwashed vegetables, typically those of the root variety, such as carrots, parsnips, potatoes, and beetroot. Please note that not all vegetables can be washed properly, such as mushrooms (because they soak up water), and therefore, they should always be prepared on a brown chopping board. 

If you’ve washed your root vegetables properly, by scrubbing them under warm running water, they can then be safely chopped on a green chopping board. 

What is the Safest Chopping Board Material?

Both hardwood and plastic are great options for chopping boards. However, plastic sits at the top of our list for several reasons:

• easier to keep dry; 
• generally more cost-effective when compared to high-quality wooden boards;
• reduced risk of cracks developing, which harbour bacteria;
• can be cleaned in a dishwasher at a high temperature.

Are Wooden Chopping Boards Hygienic?

Yes and no. It is a common misconception that wooden chopping boards are unhygienic due to their porous surface and that wood is harder to clean. However, this claim was falsely made by the U.S. Department of Agriculture several years ago and has since been debunked. Some woods, such as Maple, Bamboo, or Teak, have antibacterial properties that can resist or even kill bacteria. 

The reason we deem wooden chopping boards to be unsafe is due to the lack of colour variations, or rather, the colour itself. The colour-coded chopping board system is in place to reduce the risk of cross-contamination, serving as a visual cue for effective communication. If you use wooden chopping boards, you won’t be able to identify what the board has been previously used for.