Are Slice Safety Blades Metal Detectable?

The food manufacturing industries require metal detectable knives. This is a safety precaution, in case small chips break off a blade into the product during production. At the end of the manufacturing process, metal detectors scan the finished product to ensure its safety. For this reason, food manufacturers often ask us: are Slice ceramic safety blades metal detectable?

The answer is no, they’re not. Here’s why.

Slice safety blades are made from 100 percent pure zirconium oxide. This advanced ceramic material, which is much harder than steel, must be fired at a temperature of 1400 degrees Celsius in order to solidify into a useful blade. The firing process burns off everything except the zirconium oxide, so any steel—even steel designed to withstand high temperatures—would burn off.

Mixing additional elements with zirconium oxide also weakens its composition and diminishes its benefits, which include the following:

  • Non-conductive
  • Non-magnetic
  • Non-sparking
  • Safe up to 1600 degrees Celsius
  • Chemically inert
  • Rust free

Slice makes the only true safety blades, and these benefit many food manufacturers in their wider processes, such as shipping and receiving. Traditional blades, whether steel or ceramic, come dangerously sharp. Slice’s patent-pending edge design is safe to touch: it’s finger-friendly®.

So while our blades can’t be used directly on any product that requires metal-detectable blades, they can help keep staff safer in other aspects of your business.