You know what they say: if you can’t stand the heat…get out of the kitchen!
And if there’s one thing traditional non-stick pans can’t handle, it’s heat—at least not without breaking down and leaching toxic chemicals into the food they’re frying up.
When we go to such great lengths to ensure we buy organic and eat as healthy as possible, we don’t want to get thwarted in our health efforts at the last minute simply by what we cook our food in.
Non-toxic bakeware and non-toxic cookware brands not only make longer-lasting, more sustainable kitchen products, but those that ensure the only things your body is absorbing are wholesome nutrients.
So, where can you buy the healthiest cookware?
To answer that, we’re soon to launch our new Brand Rating System. This comprehensive and qualitative rating systems looks at brands across 22 criteria, including climate action, product performance, water management, and others you can learn about here. Check back for all the rating goodness for these brands.
We independently research all featured brands and we ask them to confirm their claims. In many cases we personally review recommended products. This post contains affiliate links which means we may earn a commission if you buy something. Learn more here.
The Best Non-Toxic Cookware Brands To Invite To Dinner
Here are our specials for the evening’s article.
The ceramic coated cookware by Caraway won’t leach anything into your food, making it some of the healthiest cookware that’s also 60% more environmentally friendly than Teflon cookware. Plus, we’ve tested it and can safely say we’ve never flipped a smoother egg.
If you’re after stainless steel cookware, Material provides extremely durable, stainless steel cookware proven to last 37x longer than ceramic.
Index: Safest & Healthiest Cookware Brands
- Caraway Jump to brand
- Xtrema Jump to brand
- Material Jump to brand
- Our Place Jump to brand
- Great Jones Jump to brand
- Kana Jump to brand
- 360 Cookware Jump to brand
Caraway
About Caraway
Price Range: $95–$145
Even if you’re a kitchen noob, non-toxic cooking is easy with Caraway’s colorful collection of frying pans, sauté pans, saucepans, and Dutch ovens. Each piece is suitable for ovens and all cooktops.
If you’re looking to clean up your whole cookware cabinet, a Caraway non-toxic ceramic nonstick cookware set will help make every meal a little healthier. And if you’re in need of plastic-free food storage options for the leftovers you’ll inevitably have, Caraway offers safe food storage sets, too.
Caraway’s Ethical & Sustainability Practices
Materials:
All Caraway nonstick cookware is made possible by a PTFE, lead, cadmium, PFAS, and PFOA-free ceramic coating. Its aluminum core is durable and conducts heat extremely well—so well that you should only use the cookware on low to medium temperatures.
Ceramic coated cookware also requires less oil when cooking and less scrubbing with your zero waste dish soap when cleaning. However, it should be kept away from metal utensils and abrasive scrubbers. The all-metal body and stainless steel handles make these oven safe cookware sets—which come with biodegradable cork trivets to set on after.
Supply chain & labor practices:
Caraway’s BSCI and SMETA-certified manufacturing partners in China are chosen because of their fair pay, safe working environments, employee benefits, and regulated work hours.
Carbon commitments & green practices:
Not only are Caraway cookware sets non-toxic, but manufacturing their ceramic coating created 60% less CO2. They use recycled cardboard, low-impact dyes, and zero plastic bags.
Xtrema
About Xtrema
Price Range: $50—$380
Xtrema offers 100% ceramic non-toxic cookware, which comes in a range of pots, pans, skillets, dutch ovens, and bakeware. Bring one of their Versa non-toxic pots to a boil, then safely simmer to perfection.
Wait, is ceramic cookware safe?
Considering theirs is doctor and nutritionist recommended, yet. Pure ceramic cookware pots and pans won’t change the taste of the food or leach chemicals, lead, cadmium, or metal, yes.
Xtrema’s Ethical & Sustainability Practices
Materials:
Unlike ceramic coated cookware, being 100% mineral clay means they won’t get scratched, revealing toxic metals underneath.
It’s also nonreactive, free of PFOA, PTFE, nanoparticles, glues, polymers, dyes, and coatings, and meets California Prop 65 standards making it some of the best non-toxic non-stick cookware.
Supply chain & labor practices:
Xtrema is family-owned and operated, but their healthy cooking pans are handmade in China due to the country’s renown ceramic manufacturing.
Carbon commitments & green practices:
While designing durable, single-material products is a huge step toward reducing impact, we’ll touch base for more information on the carbon commitment front from this brand, either in reducing manufacturing emissions or carbon offset programs.
Community & charitable giving:
Xtrema’s fulfillment centers employ those who otherwise have trouble finding jobs through a partnership with Goodwill.
Material
About Material
Price Range: $95—$295
With a name like Material, it should come as no surprise that they place a lot of emphasis on what their products are made from. Their copper and stainless steel non-toxic cookware options are limited but essential, featuring a saucepan, sauté pan, nonstick frying pan, and a set of all three.
These dishwasher safe pots and pans are affordably priced to boot (er, boil?).
Material’s Ethical & Sustainability Practices
Materials:
Materials offers only the safest cookware materials: stainless steel and aluminum coated with a stainless steel alloy coating that’s free of cadmium, lead, fumes, PFOA, and other Teflon toxins. The alloy aspect makes it fully safe, even when cooking acidic foods.
At the center of all their healthy cooking pans is a 5-ply copper core, which ensures excellent heat conductivity.
Supply chain & labor practices:
Material’s stainless steel PFOA-free cookware is made through ethical compliant partners in the US, Europe, China, and South Korea, though we’re not certain what specific projections are in place.
Carbon commitments & green practices:
Material’s stainless steel nonstick coating is shown to last 37x longer than ceramic coated cookware. Their staple line (limited edition products aside) is backed by a lifetime guarantee of repair or replacement.
Community & charitable giving:
They donate to the Korean American Community Foundation, Drive Change, and Heart of Dinner—all on the mission to alleviate food insecurity.
Our Place
About Our Place
Price Range: $60–$300
While Our Place’s range of the safest non-toxic cookware and eco-friendly dinnerware is limited, the versatility of each piece more than makes up for it.
The Always Pan is the crown jewel of their collection and our own personal kitchen. This multi-functional piece simplifies things for home chefs by replacing eight different types of cookware for any cooktop. We aren’t kidding when we say we’ve used it every single day for over a year.
When paired with the Perfect Pot via the Home Cook Duo, which can replace a stock pot, Dutch oven, roasting rack, steamer, sauce pot, strainer, braiser, and spoon rest, you have everything you need—all with just two items.
Our Place’s Ethical & Sustainability Practices
Materials:
Both pieces of ceramic coated cookware feature a partially recycled aluminum body and integrated beechwood spatula/spoon. The ceramic nonstick coating does not contain nanoparticles, cadmium, lead, PFOAs (PFAS, or PTFE).
Supply chain & labor practices:
Products are made in SEDEX, SA8000, ISO, and/or BSCI-audited factories across China, Thailand, and Mexico.
Carbon commitments & green practices:
Multi-functional products are always more sustainable because they mean you have to purchase fewer things—in Our Place’s case, fourteen fewer things! They come shipped in plastic-free, recyclable, and biodegradable materials.
Community & charitable giving:
Our Place aims to reduce American food inequality by supporting the Los Angeles Food Policy Council and Feeding America.
Great Jones
About Great Jones
Price Range: $75—$190
Backed by big name chefs like Momofuku’s David Chang, Great Jones takes the “great” part of their name very seriously. That means standing out among toxic, plain metal cookware.
Their vibrant selection of cookware comprises stockpots, skillets, warming dishes, bread pans, and sauce pots, all designed to add a splash of color to your kitchen without sacrificing functionality. For one of the safest frying pans with the coolest name, check out the King Sear.
Great Jones’s Ethical & Sustainability Practices
Materials:
Great Jones’ non-stick cookware is made from enameled cast iron, stainless steel and/or ceramic. The non-reactive stainless steel cookware won’t impact flavors, and the aluminum core distributes heat evenly. Stainless steel pans contain trace amounts of nickel, but they’re free of Teflon. Instead, a non-toxic ceramic coating is used with some of the fry pans.
The Dutch oven cast iron cookware is made of oven-safe cast iron enamel that works well with extremely high heat and doesn’t require seasoning.
Supply chain & labor practices:
While we know they partner with “vetted” manufacturers in Guangdong and Tianjin (China) and the USA, we don’t know any further details about their ethical practices and haven’t received a reply to our inquiry.
Carbon commitments & green practices:
Though backed by a limited lifetime warranty, even the best non-toxic non-stick cookware eventually loses its non-stick ability. When that happens, Great Jones accepts it back to be recycled or (if still usable) donated to Hot Bread Kitchen.
Community & charitable giving:
Female-founded Great Jones sponsors The Coy Collection on their website. This small ceramic business is a black, female-owned brand based in Austin, TX.
Kana
About Kana
Price Range: $125—$270
Kana’s Milo line of non-toxic pots and pans aren’t your average collection of enameled cast iron cookware.
Available in colors like the food-inspired Dijon, they add modern flare to a tried and true material that makes up their Dutch ovens and skillets, all backed with a lifetime warranty. Shop singles or get it all in a three, four, or five-piece cast iron pots and pans set.
Kana’s Ethical & Sustainability Practices
Materials:
Featuring 40% recycled cast iron, a stainless steel knob, and a TOMATEC™ enamel surface, this non-stick cookware doesn’t require seasoning and is free of PFOA and PTFE.
All Milo products are oven safe (to 500°F), dishwasher safe, and have been tested for REACH and California Prop 65 compliance (i.e. free of 800 dangerous chemicals).
Supply chain & labor practices:
Kana’s oven-safe cookware sets are designed in California and manufactured in family-owned factories in compliance with ISO 9001, ISO 14001, and ISO 45001 standards. Being BSCI-certified, they provide fair pay and safe working environments.
Carbon commitments & green practices:
Thanks to EcoCart, you’ll receive your order via carbon-neutral shipping.
Community & charitable giving:
Kana’s 1% for the Planet membership funds reforestation efforts through One Tree Planted.
360 Cookware
About 360 Cookware
Price range: $148–$3,768
When searching for the best non-toxic stainless steel cookware, 360 Cookware runs circles around traditional toxic cookware. They’ve done their research on what makes for heirloom quality, safe cookware sets—all backed by a lifetime warranty.
360 Cookware has a huge range of stainless steel cookware that includes stock pots, saucepans, frying pans, sauté pans, and more. For the full chef’s sampler, go for their 21-Piece Cookware Set.
360Cookware’s Ethical & Sustainability Practices:
Materials:
Promising you the safest cookware material, each piece features an aluminum core and a stainless steel outer that’s free of all PFOAs, including PFAS, PFOS, and PTFE.
Supply chain & labor practices:
With a small team of 20 located in Wisconsin, this brand is close to claiming “American-made” status, but some bakeware materials are imported from China and South Korea. While their US factory has transparency about competitive wages, IRAs for employees, and health care, there isn’t as much information about their partners in Asia.
Carbon commitments & green practices:
As far as non-toxic cookware brands go, 360 is one of the few that doesn’t require EPA permits (meaning environmentally safe manufacturing practices). We’d love to hear more about this though to have details to reinforce their claim to being “the greenest cookware factory in the world”.
Jenny is a UK-based sustainability writer and tea-drinker extraordinaire who has a Masters in Social Anthropology from the University of Edinburgh. Her travels have taken her to organic permaculture farms in the UK and Nepal but you’ll mostly find her working on the veg patch with a garden fork in one hand and a cup of tea in the other. Jenny writes for ethical brands and purpose-powered publications on a broad range of sustainable living and conscious consumerism topics. She is passionate about organic and regenerative farming, nature reconnection, and the small things we can do each day to better care for our planet.
