Does food-grade stainless steel actually exist? Or: myths that stainless steel and stainless steel products somehow rust.

We often see customers asking the same question: What kind of steel are your products made of? Is it really "food-grade stainless steel"? Or we hear that stainless steel is good, all others are not, etc. etc.

So we suggest taking a closer look at this question of whether the type of stainless steel—food-grade or otherwise—used in your products is actually important, and in which cases it will play a pivotal role in the final characteristics of your product.

There are three main grades of stainless steel available on the Ukrainian market: AISI 430, AISI 201, and AISI 304.

The first two grades are fairly similar in their chemical composition (the percentage of non-ferrous metal alloy) and their ability to be mechanically processed and welded.
The third grade of steel, AISI 304, is considered the most expensive due to the increased chromium and nickel content, which, theoretically, produces better "stainlessness".

But there's one "but", as they say. None of the above steel grades can be considered food-grade or not when compared to each other. Why? Because all surgical instruments, tableware, and appliances that you consider to be very high quality and safe are made from the cheapest on the list, AISI 430. Most people in Ukraine's HoReCa market find this grade to be neither food-grade nor magnetic, and it therefore cannot be considered more stainless than the other, more expensive steel grades.

When should I use 304 stainless steel?

Based on our almost 30 years of experience in manufacturing professional technological catering equipment, we can note that when the product (sink, work table, bar station, or other) will be used with aggressive cleaners or in a high-humidity environment like by pools or the sea (which also adds increased salinity), there is almost no alternative, if any, to AISI-304 if you want your equipment to maintain its appearance and features over the years. In all other cases, it makes sense to use other grades of stainless steel.

Why does your stainless steel rust?

1. During the production process, there are stages such as bending and welding in a protective argon environment that to higher or lower degrees affect the protective top layer of stainless steels, breaking it in places where it is bent or welded. Therefore, there may be slight rusting in these places even in a new product, but the protective layer on stainless steel is able to be restored by cleaning these areas with mild cleaners and non-aggressive methods.
2. The use of tap water without additional primary filtration may cause rusty deposits to appear on the surface of the stainless steel product. In this case, it is necessary to either purify the water further, which in most cases is not ideal, or to not pay any special attention to it.
3. In areas that are mechanically processed (through cleaning or grinding) like the corners of tables or washing machines etc., microparticles of the abrasive materials used for these procedures are quite often left behind. This means that when the finished product is being used, especially if the product is in contact with water (i.e., washing), slight rust-looking deposits will sometimes appear. These are the abrasive microparticles reacting with water and producing these deposits. This problem can be solved simply: just wash with a damp cloth and mild detergent first, and then wipe dry.

We won't add a fourth point about the constant care that any stainless steel product requires to maintain its appearance.

Thank you for reading to the end, and we hope you found this article helpful.