We warned you last month to “Throw Out Your Black Plastic Spatula.” In a recent study conducted about consumer products, researchers concluded kitchen utensils had some of the highest levels of flame retardants, which you do not want anywhere near your hot food. After the article was published, its author received reports, possibly exaggerated, of people in Burlington, Vermont, throwing their black plastic spatulas out en masse. You should too. That article was just the appetizer. This episode of Radio Atlantic is the entire meal, coming to you in time for Thanksgiving. We talk to its author, staff writer Zoë Schlanger, about every other plastic thing in your kitchen: cutting boards, nonstick pans, plastic wrap, slow cookers, sippy cups. Read it before you cook. And prepare to hassle your plastic-loving hosts. Politely. --- Share understanding this holiday season. For less than $2 a week, give a year-long Atlantic subscription to someone special. They’ll get unlimited access to Atlantic journalism, including magazine issues, narrated articles, puzzles, and more. Give today at TheAtlantic.com/podgift. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Well, it's Thanksgiving, the day on the American calendar centered most around food, when we gather together to cook for our families and friends. And in this episode, we're going to talk about our kitchens and the things in them that we should maybe be worrying about. I'm Hannah Rosen. This is Radio Atlantic. And this week, we're here to ruin your Thanksgiving. A little bit. Just kidding.
Mostly. What I'm talking about is an Atlantic story from a few weeks ago that hit a nerve with people. The headline of that story was, Throw Out Your Black Plastic Spatula. And I'm joined in the studio by the author of that story, staff writer Zoe Schlanger, who writes about science and the environment. Hi, Zoe. Hi, Hannah. I have a black plastic spatula. Oh, no. I do.
I've been using it for so many years that I can't. You know what, Zoe? I have two black plastic spatulas. Because the first one started melting? Because the first one just ate into my brain and I did it. It told you to acquire a second of its kind. It told me to acquire a second, exactly. So, okay, you said that black plastic utensils are probably leaching chemicals into our cooking.
And I want to understand why, but I will say that your story opened up a whole bunch of worries besides the spatula that I want to run by you, not just for me, but for a lot of my friends. And I'm sure that happened to you as well.
Oh, yes.
Yeah. Were a lot of people writing you?
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