Minimalist Style Melamine Tableware

Melamine is a chemical that is approved by the Food and Drug Administration for a variety of uses, including cooking utensils, plastic products, and industrial coatings, among other things. But historical misuse of this chemical, as well as some research in lab settings, may cause many people to wonder if melamine dinnerware is safe for them.

“Melamine is infamous as an illegal adulterant in pet food and children’s milk formulas, resulting in the deaths of six children and kidney problems in many more,” says Ian Musgrave, a molecular pharmacologist at the University of Adelaide in Australia. In 2008, at least 22 manufacturers of powdered baby formula in China were discovered to have been illegally fortifying their baby formula with melamine. “However, there is no good evidence that the minute amounts we consume in our diets have any effect on people in general.”