Clay Safety

One concern that people have about cooking in ceramic pots is that a glaze may contain lead and /or cadmium that could possibly leach into foods if the glaze was improperly formulated, applied, or fired.

There’s even a theory that the Roman Empire fell due to lead poisoning from city water pipes and citizen’s cooking pots.

You needn’t worry about new glazed cooking pots imported or domestically produced as its manufacture is regulated. All pottery sold for cooking must be tested and certified as safe by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. And nearly all small American production potters use lead-free glazes.