I’ve updated my original post, but I wanted to post here that I did hear back from Dick Blick, Pebeo Porcelaine, and Adorn magazine (where I got the idea for the ceramic paints project) about the food safety of using the paints on food surfaces. Although when I got emails back from Dick Blick and Pebeo Porcelaine, I concluded that the paints were not really food safe, I received this message from the editors at Adorn:
“Hi Ginger. We have contacted Pebeo and have confirmed that the Pebeo Porcelaine Paint 150 used in our Adorn feature is food safe. The paint has been tested at Duke University, and was reported non-toxic and food safe for food contact.
Though the paint is non-toxic, it is not recommended for use on a dinner plate because sharp objects, such as a steak knife, could damage the design and bacteria could potentially become trapped in cracks caused by utensils. However, the paint itself is not harmful to ingest even if scraped off.
The reason the paint is not currently FDA approved is cost. The cost for FDA approval is approximately $50,000 per paint color, which Pebeo may pursue at a future time.”
I’ve updated that post – you can read all the information I got back from all three sources there too – but I think just to be on the safe side, I won’t use the paints on any food surfaces.