Not long ago, no well-appointed home lacked a bowl of wax fruit as a dining table centerpiece. And, although not nearly as widely used as they used to be, many homes still display faux apples, grapes and bananas as décor, though they are no longer made from wax. We typically see display foods used in grocery stores, restaurants, and coffee shops, but they are also used by doctors to teach balanced nutrition, by interior designers who stage houses, and by the entertainment industry. These food props are more common than you might expect, and are used for many 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 fairly long and sophisticated, and starts with a silicone mold of the food to be imitated. Color is then carefully 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 possible.
Virtually all display foods are fashioned by hand, an art that was perfected in Japan at the end of World War II, when foreigners began to arrive to help rebuild the country. Since these foreigners were unable to read the menus, candle makers and other artisans created paraffin duplicates of the dishes offered at restaurants, enabling 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 enduring materials came to the fore.
One would not expect the Food and drug administration to take an interest in fake food, but the fact is that even if it isn't ingested, some of the chemicals used in its manufacture can leach out and taint any real food nearby. For this reason, any food props used in grocery stores, restaurants or other areas that contain real edibles must pass FDA inspection.
Therefore, it is very important that careful attention be paid to the source of any fake food display. Much of the product made overseas contains 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 risk. Purchasing fake foods from a trustworthy company whose product has been approved by the FDA is the best way to ensure the safety of consumers and should be the principal concern of those who use food props for any display.
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Author Resource:-
If you are interested in purchasing FDA-approved display foods for your restaurant, grocery store, or home, author Stephen Daniels highly recommends Fancy Foods and Things. Their high-quality products are safe for use around real food, and are made of the best materials available.
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