Good Cook · Silicone Cutting & Prep Boards
Good Books Good Cook Flexible Chopping Mats
No coating details disclosed, look for brands with better transparency.
Good Cook hasn't disclosed the coating or PFAS status of this mat, and flexible silicone or PVC may contain PFAS depending on manufacturing.
The safe swap
Teflon
Ryobi Self-Healing Cutting Mat
80/100 safety
Same rubric that flunked this product. The swap earned Excellent.
Still want this one anyway? Check the price on Amazon. We’d swap it.
Material
Flexible silicone or PVC chopping mat, coating unspecified
Brand disclosure
Brand is silent on PFAS
Lab data
No public lab test
What’s concerning
Non-stick, chemistry undisclosed
Advertised as non-stick but coating type is not explained.
Category baseline
PFAS exposure happens more often with clothing products.
No PFAS disclosure
The company has not publicly discussed PFAS in this product.
Phthalates
Good Cook mats may contain PVC instead of or blended with silicone; PVC is commonly plasticized with phthalates, which can migrate to fatty or acidic foods. No material certification rules this out.
Source: ATSDR ↗Coating degradation and microparticle release
Any unspecified surface treatment or coating on the mat may degrade over time or with wear, potentially releasing particles into food contact surfaces. Silicone itself is stable, but additives or coatings are not disclosed.
Leachable additives from base polymer
Flexible silicone and PVC formulations typically contain uncrosslinked oligomers and processing aids that can migrate in minor quantities, especially with acidic, fatty, or hot foods. No testing data is available for this specific product.
Lack of food-contact certification
The product carries no published NSF, FDA food-contact clearance, or equivalent third-party verification. This is standard for budget kitchen mats but limits assurance of chemical safety standards.
Material composition ambiguity
Retailers and product descriptions do not clearly specify whether the mat is silicone, PVC, or a blend, preventing informed hazard assessment at purchase. This opacity itself is a minor but real consumer safety transparency gap.
The full breakdown
What it's made of and why it matters
Good Cook's flexible chopping mats are typically silicone or PVC based on product line variants, though the specific material composition is not clearly disclosed on most retailer listings. Silicone mats are inherently more chemically stable at room temperature and food-contact scenarios than PVC, which can leach plasticizers like phthalates under stress or with acidic foods. The coating or any surface treatments applied to these mats are unspecified, which prevents full assessment of potential leaching hazards. Flexible mats sold under this brand have no publicly available third-party certifications (e.g., FDA clearance statements, NSF approval) listed in accessible product documentation.
The brand's record and disclosure
Good Cook, a house brand primarily distributed through Kohl's and mass retailers, has no established public record of PFAS testing, disclosure, or formal commitment to avoid these chemicals in kitchen products. The brand has not published material safety data sheets or composition transparency statements for this product line. No significant recalls or safety controversies specific to Good Cook chopping mats appear in FDA or CPSC records, though this reflects limited scrutiny rather than proven safety. The parent company (Salton, Inc. successor entities) has not made category-wide chemical safety commitments comparable to premium cookware brands.
How it compares in its category
Silicone mats occupy a middle tier of chopping surface safety. They avoid heavy metal concerns present in some glazed ceramic or enameled wood alternatives, and they sidestep the heat-related coating breakdown risks of nonstick cookware with Teflon-type coating. However, they lack the transparency and third-party vetting of premium silicone products (e.g., those certified food-grade by NSF or with published material safety data). Budget-tier flexible mats from unbranded or less transparent manufacturers carry higher ambiguity around plasticizer content and potential contaminant migration than recognized silicone cookware brands.
If you buy it
Use the mat only for room-temperature or warm food prep; do not place hot cookware directly on it or expose it to temperatures above 350-400°F, as silicone and PVC can degrade and leach at elevated heat. Inspect the mat monthly for tears, discoloration, or odor changes; replace if any appear, as these signal polymer breakdown. Wash by hand with mild soap and cool water; avoid aggressive scrubbing and high-heat dishwasher cycles, which accelerate material fatigue. If material composition (silicone vs. PVC) remains unclear after purchase, contact the retailer or manufacturer directly to inform future buying decisions, especially if food allergies or chemical sensitivity are a household concern.
What we don’t know
- Basis
- Model estimate, 35% confidence, not a lab result
- Lab test
- None on record for this exact product
- Brand statement
- Good Cook has made none
Formulations change between production runs, so check the current label. How we grade.
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More silicone cutting & prep boards grades
How we score: every product runs through the same public 0–100 rubric based on materials, coatings, brand disclosure, lab findings, and recalls. See the full methodology → Spotted a mistake? Report an error.