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Antimicrobial slab countertops for the best dishes and ultimate food hygiene!
It is a very important space, where habits require extra attention, so in this article we will be taking a look at antimicrobial kitchen countertops, what the best material to use is, and all the advantages of antimicrobial slabs.
The kitchen is a room where magic happens, where memories are made and unforgettable moments are spent. Considered by many to be the true heart of the home, it is essential not to make any mistakes when designing the kitchen, as every component needs the right level of attention. To ensure not only the best dishes, but also the highest levels of hygiene for your preparations, it is important to know that there are certifications, such as NSF, which guarantee the suitability of worksurfaces for direct contact with foodstuffs: not all countertops, as beautiful as they may look, are also functional over the long term.
Choosing antimicrobial countertops is therefore of primary importance, both in residential and commercial environments.
How to choose the best material for kitchen slab countertops
When it comes to choosing the best cooking surfaces, you need to take various criteria into consideration: appearance, strength, durability, hygiene, and ease of cleaning. From a basic laminate countertop to porcelain stoneware, quartz, and natural stone or marble – each material has its own pros and cons. Choosing the best material for kitchen slab countertops must take all these characteristics into account.
First of all, think about resistance to scratching. The kitchen countertop needs to resist significant day-to-day stresses, and while no material is completely abrasion proof, they all offer different levels of toughness. Laminate, for example, is easier to scratch than marble on the MOHS hardness scale. Moving up the rankings we come to granite, which is famously difficult to scratch, but at the top of the pile for scratch resistance, believe it or not, is porcelain stoneware!
As regards hygiene, it is important to take the porosity into consideration: a porous material will retain germs and bacteria more easily. Marble and granite are naturally microporous and so are more subject to bacterial proliferation than laminate, steel and, above all, porcelain stoneware, whose surface is impermeable and compact, and thus intrinsically hygienic.
Being in the kitchen, a countertop will inevitably come into contact with different kinds of acids, from food ingredients to cleaning products. Some of them can dissolve limestone, and so it is important to keep them away if the countertop is made of marble. While it may be true that the best marble for kitchen slab countertops is the beautiful but pricy Carrara Marble, celebrated for its use in classical sculpture and featuring sugary white crystals, you also need to bear in mind that it is a porous and delicate material which is vulnerable to acids. A tougher and more economical choice which still provides the same appearance and timeless charm is marble effect porcelain stoneware.
Porcelain stoneware in the kitchen: discover the most antimicrobial countertop of them all
We can say in general terms that the best tiles for the kitchen are those made from porcelain stoneware: a material which is no longer the sole preserve of walls and floors, but is also perfect for kitchen countertops, backsplashes, work surfaces, tables, upstands and even doors. The best antibacterial countertop is therefore porcelain stoneware, taking into account its impact resistance, durability, ease of cleaning and antimicrobial qualities, combined with gorgeous aesthetics capable of reproducing the best-loved materials.
In particular, it is worth bearing in mind that all the collections from the brand Level have obtained NSF food contact certification. They have therefore been officially approved as “Food Equipment Material” under the NSF/ANSI 51 standard. Each collection meets different aesthetic and design requirements suited to every project:
- Level Marmi is an excellent choice for an elegant, refined and spectacular kitchen. Available in 160 x 320 cm (6.5 mm thick rectified) and 162 x 324 cm (12 mm thick non-rectified) sizes, this collection allows for uniform and continuous wall and floor coverings, lending itself to surfaces such as countertops and backsplashes as well. This collection is perfect for combining the highest level of aesthetic refinement with the benefits of porcelain stoneware in terms of strength and hygiene.
- Thanks to Level Stone, the stone effect (basalt and travertine) reproduced on large-size porcelain stoneware tiles allows the kitchen to take on a modern twist, in keeping with the most innovative design trends.
- Level Concrete, on the other hand, is the collection inspired by concrete, and investigates all the expressive possibilities of this material, offering large concrete effect porcelain stoneware slabs, guaranteeing maximum stylistic freedom.
What’s more, all products from Emilgroup’s catalogs can, on request, be treated with the innovative Shield process which, thanks to an active ingredient featuring silver ions, prevents bacterial growth, transforming a beautiful surface into the most antimicrobial countertop there is.
NSF Standard for antimicrobial slabs
NSF, National Sanitation Foundation, is a public health non-profit. Founded in 1944 in the United States, it provides certifications for products and systems (particularly in food, water, air and environmental areas), evaluating every aspect of development in accordance with strict standards and procedures.
In 2022, Emilgroup obtained prestigious NSF recognition: Level slabs have been officially approved and certified as “Food Equipment Material”. The NSF/ANSI 51 standard, more specifically, guarantees the suitability of surfaces for direct contact with foodstuffs.
It is a very important achievement which certifies the quality of Emilgroup’s products, and which reflects in particular on their use as kitchen countertops. Level slabs perfectly meet all requirements for protection and hygiene: the materials, design, manufacturing, production and performance – an all-round guarantee of safety which, combined with their aesthetic excellence, guarantees the perfect surface for every kitchen.
01 February 2023
Magazine
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