ISO/FDIS 8442-1

• Status: Not Published
• ICS: 67.250 - Materials and articles in contact with foodstuffs
• ICS: 97.040.60 - Cookware, cutlery and flatware
• Technical Committee: ISO/TC 186 - Cutlery and table and decorative metal hollow-ware
• Drafting Committee: ISO/TC 186/WG 2 - Cutlery - Requirements and Specification
• Current Stage: 5000 - FDIS registered for formal approval
• Start Date: 15-Sep-2026
• Completion Date: 14-Jul-2026

• Consolidates: prEN ISO 8442-1 - Materials and articles in contact with foodstuffs - Cutlery and table holloware - Part 1: Requirements for cutlery for the preparation of food (ISO/DIS 8442-1:2025)
• Effective Date: 12-Feb-2026
• Consolidates: ISO 20567-4:2023 - Paints and varnishes — Determination of stone-chip resistance of coatings — Part 4: Mobile multi-impact testing on a small testing area
• Effective Date: 15-Feb-2025
• Revises: ISO 8442-1:1997 - Materials and articles in contact with foodstuffs — Cutlery and table holloware — Part 1: Requirements for cutlery for the preparation of food
• Effective Date: 15-Feb-2025

FINAL DRAFT
International
Standard
ISO/TC 186
Materials and articles in contact
Secretariat: SAC
with foodstuffs — Cutlery and table
Voting begins on:
holloware —
2026-10-27
Part 1:
Voting terminates on:
2026-12-08
Requirements for cutlery for the
preparation of food
Matériaux et objets en contact avec les denrées alimentaires —
Coutellerie et orfèvrerie de table —
Partie 1: Exigences relatives à la coutellerie utilisée pour la
préparation des denrées alimentaires
RECIPIENTS OF THIS DRAFT ARE INVITED TO SUBMIT,
WITH THEIR COMMENTS, NOTIFICATION OF ANY
RELEVANT PATENT RIGHTS OF WHICH THEY ARE AWARE
AND TO PROVIDE SUPPOR TING DOCUMENTATION.
IN ADDITION TO THEIR EVALUATION AS
BEING ACCEPTABLE FOR INDUSTRIAL, TECHNO-
ISO/CEN PARALLEL PROCESSING LOGICAL, COMMERCIAL AND USER PURPOSES, DRAFT
INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS MAY ON OCCASION HAVE
TO BE CONSIDERED IN THE LIGHT OF THEIR POTENTIAL
TO BECOME STAN DARDS TO WHICH REFERENCE MAY BE
MADE IN NATIONAL REGULATIONS.
Reference number
FINAL DRAFT
International
Standard
ISO/TC 186
Materials and articles in contact
Secretariat: SAC
with foodstuffs — Cutlery and table
Voting begins on:
holloware —
Part 1:
Voting terminates on:
Requirements for cutlery for the
preparation of food
Matériaux et objets en contact avec les denrées alimentaires —
Coutellerie et orfèvrerie de table —
Partie 1: Exigences relatives à la coutellerie utilisée pour la
préparation des denrées alimentaires
© ISO 2026
All rights reserved.
RECIPIENTS OF THIS DRAFT ARE INVITED TO SUBMIT,
WITH THEIR COMMENTS, NOTIFICATION OF ANY
This ISO publication is protected by copyright and is owned by ISO and/or its licensors.
RELEVANT PATENT RIGHTS OF WHICH THEY ARE AWARE
The content of this ISO publication is provided under licence, not sold. Use is subject to the applicable licence terms issued by ISO,
AND TO PROVIDE SUPPOR TING DOCUMENTATION.
an ISO member body, or an authorized third-party distributor.
IN ADDITION TO THEIR EVALUATION AS
BEING ACCEPTABLE FOR INDUSTRIAL, TECHNO-
Except as required for implementation or expressly permitted by a separate licence, no part of this ISO publication may be
ISO/CEN PARALLEL PROCESSING
LOGICAL, COMMERCIAL AND USER PURPOSES, DRAFT
reproduced, distributed, modified, used, or made available in any form or by any means – electronic or mechanical, including
INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS MAY ON OCCASION HAVE
photocopying, scanning, recording, or posting on internal or external digital platforms. TO BE CONSIDERED IN THE LIGHT OF THEIR POTENTIAL
TO BECOME STAN DARDS TO WHICH REFERENCE MAY BE
Any use beyond the scope of the granted rights is prohibited and may result in legal action.
MADE IN NATIONAL REGULATIONS.
ISO copyright office
CP 401 • CH-1214 Vernier, Geneva
Phone: [phone]
Email: [e-mail]
Website: www.iso.org
Published in Switzerland
Reference number
ii
Contents Page
Foreword .iv
1 Scope . 1
2 Normative references . 1
3 Terms and definitions . 1
4 General conditions for testing . 3
5 Measurement of lengths . 3
5.1 General .3
5.2 Total length .4
5.3 Blade length . .4
6 Cutting edge types . 4
6.1 Smooth cutting edges .4
6.2 Serrated cutting edges .5
7 Materials . 5
7.1 Blades .5
7.2 Handles .5
8 Performance requirements . . 5
8.1 Flexible blade .5
8.2 Sharpness and wear resistance .6
8.2.1 Sharpness . . .6
8.2.2 Wear resistance .6
8.3 Resistance of blade and handle .6
8.3.1 Resistance against dropping .6
8.3.2 Lateral bending strength .6
8.3.3 Bending strength in the direction of use .6
8.3.4 Firmness of the handle .7
8.4 Hardness .7
8.5 Dishwasher resistance .8
8.5.1 General .8
8.5.2 Procedure .8
8.5.3 Evaluation . .8
8.6 Exclusion of hidden defects .8
8.6.1 General .8
8.6.2 Evaluation .8
8.7 Gap dimensions and cracks .9
9 Hygiene . . 9
10 Skin and food contact . 9
Annex A (normative) Dropping test .10
Annex B (normative) Lateral bending test .11
Annex C (normative) Bending test in direction of use .13
Annex D (normative) Pull and torsion test . 14
Annex E (normative) Immersion test . . 17
Bibliography .20

iii
Foreword
ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) is a worldwide federation of national standards
bodies (ISO member bodies). The work of preparing International Standards is normally carried out through
ISO technical committees. Each member body interested in a subject for which a technical committee
has been established has the right to be represented on that committee. International organizations,
governmental and non-governmental, in liaison with ISO, also take part in the work. ISO collaborates closely
with the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) on all matters of electrotechnical standardization.
The procedures used to develop this document and those intended for its further maintenance are described
in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1. In particular, the different approval criteria needed for the different types
of ISO documents should be noted. This document was drafted in accordance with the editorial rules of the
ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2 (see www.iso.org/directives).
ISO draws attention to the possibility that the implementation of this document may involve the use of (a)
patent(s). ISO takes no position concerning the evidence, validity or applicability of any claimed patent
rights in respect thereof. As of the date of publication of this document, ISO had not received notice of (a)
patent(s) which may be required to implement this document. However, implementers are cautioned that
this may not represent the latest information, which may be obtained from the patent database available at
www.iso.org/patents. ISO shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.
Any trade name used in this document is information given for the convenience of users and does not
constitute an endorsement.
For an explanation of the voluntary nature of standards, the meaning of ISO specific terms and expressions
related to conformity assessment, as well as information about ISO's adherence to the World Trade
Organization (WTO) principles in the Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT), see www.iso.org/iso/foreword.html.
This document was prepared by Technical Committee ISO/TC 186, Cutlery and table and decorative metal
hollow-ware, in collaboration with the European Committee for Standardization (CEN) Technical Committee
CEN/TC 194, Utensils in contact with food, in accordance with the Agreement on technical cooperation
between ISO and CEN (Vienna Agreement).
This second edition cancels and replaces the first edition (ISO 8442-1:1997), which has been technically
revised.
The main changes are as follows:
— new dimensions (total length, blade length) have been defined (see Clause 5);
— previous Table 1 "Metals for cutlery blades, composition limits" has been deleted;
— the tang and bolster corrosion test have been deleted;
— the general corrosion test has been revised (see Annex E);
— the bending test has been revised (see Annex B);
— the bending test in direction of use has been introduced (see Annex C);
— minimum hardness values for blades by material classes have been introduced (see Table 1);
— 6.5, 6.6, 6.7 and previous Clause 7 "Marking and labelling" have been deleted.
A list of all parts in the ISO 8442 series can be found on the ISO website.
Any feedback or questions on this document should be directed to the user’s national standards body. A
complete listing of these bodies can be found at www.iso.org/members.html.

iv
FINAL DRAFT International Standard ISO/FDIS 8442-1:2026(en)
Materials and articles in contact with foodstuffs — Cutlery
and table holloware —
Part 1:
Requirements for cutlery for the preparation of food
1 Scope
This document specifies material and performance requirements and test methods for handheld knives
with metal blades intended for use in the preparation of food in household and commercial kitchens as well
as in facilities.
This document does not apply for hunting knives, pocket knives, razors, utility or tool knives (with
trapezoidal blade for cutting carpets).
[1]
This document does not apply for ceramic knives, which are covered by ISO 8442-9 .
2 Normative references
The following documents are referred to in the text in such a way that some or all of their content constitutes
requirements of this document. For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For undated references,
the latest edition of the referenced document (including any amendments) applies.
ISO 2768-1, General tolerances — Part 1: Tolerances for linear and angular dimensions without individual
tolerance indications
ISO 6507-1, Metallic materials — Vickers hardness test — Part 1: Test method
ISO 6508-1, Metallic materials — Rockwell hardness test — Part 1: Test method (scales A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, K, N,
T)
ISO 6769:2022, Vitreous and porcelain enamels — Determination of surface scratch hardness according to the
Mohs scale
ISO 8442-5, Materials and articles in contact with foodstuffs — Cutlery and table holloware — Part 5:
Specification for sharpness and edge retention test of cutlery
ISO 18265, Metallic materials — Conversion of hardness values
EN 12875-1, Mechanical dishwashing resistance of utensils - Part 1: Reference test method for domestic articles
EN 12875-2, Mechanical dishwashing resistance of utensils - Part 2: Inspection of non-metallic articles
3 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document, the following terms and definitions apply.
ISO and IEC maintain terminology databases for use in standardization at the following addresses:
— IEC Electropedia: available at http:// www .electropedia .org/
— ISO Online browsing platform: available at http:// www .iso .org/ obp

3.1
knife
cutlery used for the preparation of food, manually guided and in general having a cutting edge (3.2.4)
Note 1 to entry: The two major components of a knife are the blade (3.2.1) and the handle (3.2.2).
Note 2 to entry: See Figure 1 for examples of a complex and a simple knife (3.1).
b) Simple knife
a) Complex knife
Key
1 tip of the blade
2 cutting edge
3 back of the blade
4 choil
5 bolster
6 tang
7 rivet
8 blade
9 handle
Figure 1 — Examples for knives with designation of knife parts
3.2
Design structure
3.2.1
blade
thinner part of the knife (3.1) used for cutting and intended to come into contact with food
Note 1 to entry: Characteristics of a flexible blade are given in 8.1.

3.2.2
handle
thicker part of the knife (3.1) used for holding the knife (3.1) safely and not intended to come into contact
with food
Note 1 to entry: The bolster is considered as part of the handle (3.2.2).
Note 2 to entry: Whether the handle needs to comply with regulations for food contact materials depends on local
regulations.
3.2.3
wooden handle
handle completely made from real wood and thus not suitable for dishwasher cleaning
Note 1 to entry: Handles made from wood parts or textiles, which are included in a resin (in general called ‘micarta’)
or wooden handles, which are completely covered by a lacquer are not included in this definition.
3.2.4
cutting edge
sharpened part of the blade (3.2.1) intended for cutting
Note 1 to entry: The cutting edge (3.2.4) starts at the bottom of the blade (3.2.1) and ends at the tip of the blade (3.2.1).
The back of the blade (3.2.1) is located on the opposite side of the cutting edge (3.2.4).
3.3
sharpness
parameter, which reflects the force needed to cut into a defined test material with a defined cutting
movement
3.4
wear resistance
resistance of the cutting edge (3.2.4) against wear, tested by cutting into an abrasive test material
3.5
professional use
use of a knife (3.1) done by a professional in an economic activity
Note 1 to entry: In contrast to the domestic or private use, professional use of knives occurs mainly in the industry
(meat and fish slaughterhouses, butchers, bakeries, etc.) but also includes commercial kitchens (e.g. hotels and
restaurants) and food shops.
Note 2 to entry: Professional use in the context of this document focuses in a normal situation for the knife (3.1), where
a sterilization is applied on a regular basis. The sterilization is often performed with boiling water or hot steam. It
cannot be excluded that the knives are used with appropriate gloves immediately after sterilization.
4 General conditions for testing
Unless otherwise specified, the tests shall be carried out at an ambient temperature of 23 °C ± 5 °C.
5 Measurement of lengths
5.1 General
Two dimensions for knives are defined in this document. Tolerance class c (coarse) specified in ISO 2768-1
shall apply to all lengths determined below. Examples for length determination are shown in Figure 2.

b)
a)
c)
d)
Key
1 total length
2 sharpened part of blade
3 blade length
Figure 2 — Examples for determining lengths
NOTE 1 The sum of the blade length and handle length can differ from the total length.
NOTE 2 If dimensions are specified the definitions in this document apply.
5.2 Total length
The total length (see Figure 2, key 1) is the largest straight connection of the two most distant points of the
knife.
5.3 Blade length
The blade length (Figure 2, key 3) starts from the closest point to the handle which is already sharp to the
tip or to the furthest point of the radius if there is no tip. The shortest connection between the two points is
measured.
NOTE The sharpened part of the blade (see Figure 2) can be shorter than the blade length.
6 Cutting edge types
6.1 Smooth cutting edges
Cutting edges with smoot
...

ISO/TC 186
Secretariat: SAC
Date: 2026-09-29xx
Materials and articles in contact with foodstuffs — Cutlery and table
holloware —
Part 1:
Requirements for cutlery for the preparation of food
Matériaux et objets en contact avec les denrées alimentaires — Coutellerie et orfèvrerie de table —
Partie 1: Exigences relatives à la coutellerie utilisée pour la préparation des denrées alimentaires
FDIS stage
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All rights reserved.
This ISO publication is protected by copyright and is owned by ISO and/or its licensors.
The content of this ISO publication is provided under licence, not sold. Use is subject to the applicable licence terms issued
by ISO, an ISO member body, or an authorized third-party distributor.
Except as required for implementation or expressly permitted by a separate licence, no part of this ISO publication may
be reproduced, distributed, modified, used, or made available in any form or by any means – electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, scanning, recording, or posting on internal or external digital platforms.
Any use beyond the scope of the granted rights is prohibited and may result in legal action.
ISO copyright office
CP 401 • CH-1214 Vernier, Geneva
Phone: + 41 22 749 01 11
Email: [e-mail]
Website: www.iso.org
Published in Switzerland
ii
Contents
Foreword . iv
1 Scope . 1
2 Normative references . 1
3 Terms and definitions . 1
4 General conditions for testing . 3
5 Measurement of lengths . 4
5.1 General . 4
5.2 Total length . 4
5.3 Blade length . 4
6 Cutting edge types . 5
6.1 Smooth cutting edges . 5
6.2 Serrated cutting edges . 5
7 Materials . 5
7.1 Blades . 5
7.2 Handles . 5
8 Performance requirements . 6
8.1 Flexible blade . 6
8.2 Sharpness and wear resistance . 6
8.3 Resistance of blade and handle . 6
8.4 Hardness . 7
8.5 Dishwasher resistance . 8
8.6 Exclusion of hidden defects . 9
8.7 Gap dimensions and cracks . 9
9 Hygiene . 9
10 Skin and food contact . 9
Annex A (normative) Dropping test . 10
Annex B (normative) Lateral bending test. 11
Annex C (normative) Bending test in direction of use . 13
Annex D (normative) Pull and torsion test . 14
Annex E (normative) Immersion test . 17
Bibliography . 20

iii
Foreword
ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) is a worldwide federation of national standards
bodies (ISO member bodies). The work of preparing International Standards is normally carried out through
ISO technical committees. Each member body interested in a subject for which a technical committee has been
established has the right to be represented on that committee. International organizations, governmental and
non-governmental, in liaison with ISO, also take part in the work. ISO collaborates closely with the
International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) on all matters of electrotechnical standardization.
The procedures used to develop this document and those intended for its further maintenance are described
in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1. In particular, the different approval criteria needed for the different types of
ISO documents should be noted. This document was drafted in accordance with the editorial rules of the
ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2 (see www.iso.org/directives).
ISO draws attention to the possibility that the implementation of this document may involve the use of (a)
patent(s). ISO takes no position concerning the evidence, validity or applicability of any claimed patent rights
in respect thereof. As of the date of publication of this document, ISO had not received notice of (a) patent(s)
which may be required to implement this document. However, implementers are cautioned that this may not
represent the latest information, which may be obtained from the patent database available at
www.iso.org/patents. ISO shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.
Any trade name used in this document is information given for the convenience of users and does not
constitute an endorsement.
For an explanation of the voluntary nature of standards, the meaning of ISO specific terms and expressions
related to conformity assessment, as well as information about ISO's adherence to the World Trade
Organization (WTO) principles in the Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT), see www.iso.org/iso/foreword.html.
This document was prepared by Technical Committee ISO/TC 186, Cutlery and table and decorative metal
hollow-ware, in collaboration with the European Committee for Standardization (CEN) Technical Committee
CEN/TC 194, Utensils in contact with food, in accordance with the Agreement on technical cooperation
between ISO and CEN (Vienna Agreement).
This second edition cancels and replaces the first edition (ISO 8442-1:1997), which has been technically
revised.
The main changes are as follows:
— new dimensions (total length, blade length) have been defined (see Clause 5);
— the tableprevious Table 1 "Metals for cutlery blades, composition limits" has been deleted;
— the tang and bolster corrosion test have been deleted;
— the general corrosion test has been revised (see Annex E);
— the bending test has been revised (see Annex B);
— the bending test in direction of use has been introduced (see Annex C);
— minimum hardness values for blades by material classes have been introduced (see Table 1);
— 6.5, 6.6, 6.7, and previous Clause 7 "Marking and labelling" have been deleted.
A list of all parts in the ISO 8442 series can be found on the ISO website.
iv
Any feedback or questions on this document should be directed to the user’s national standards body. A
complete listing of these bodies can be found at www.iso.org/members.html.
v
Materials and articles in contact with foodstuffs — Cutlery and table
holloware —
Part 1:
Requirements for cutlery for the preparation of food
1 Scope
This document specifies material and performance requirements and test methods for handheld knives with
metal blades intended for use in the preparation of food in household and commercial kitchens as well as in
facilities.
This document does not apply for hunting knives, pocket knives, razors, utility or tool knives (with trapezoidal
blade for cutting carpets).
[1]
This document does not apply for ceramic knives, which are covered by ISO 8442-9:2018 .
2 Normative references
The following documents are referred to in the text in such a way that some or all of their content constitutes
requirements of this document. For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For undated references,
the latest edition of the referenced document (including any amendments) applies.
ISO 2768-1, General tolerances — Part 1: Tolerances for linear and angular dimensions without individual
tolerance indications
ISO 6507-1, Metallic materials — Vickers hardness test — Part 1: Test method
ISO 6508-1, Metallic materials — Rockwell hardness test — Part 1: Test method (scales A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, K, N,
T)
ISO 6769:2022, Vitreous and porcelain enamels — Determination of surface scratch hardness according to the
Mohs scale
ISO 8442-5, Materials and articles in contact with foodstuffs — Cutlery and table holloware — Part 5:
Specification for sharpness and edge retention test of cutlery
ISO 18265, Metallic materials — Conversion of hardness values
EN 12875-1, Mechanical dishwashing resistance of utensils - Part 1: Reference test method for domestic articles
EN 12875-2, Mechanical dishwashing resistance of utensils - Part 2: Inspection of non-metallic articles
3 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document, the following terms and definitions apply.
ISO and IEC maintain terminology databases for use in standardization at the following addresses:
— IEC Electropedia: available at http://www.electropedia.org/
— ISO Online browsing platform: available at http://www.iso.org/obp
3.1
knife
cutlery used for the preparation of food, manually guided and in general having a cutting edge (3.2.4); the two
major components of a knife are blade () and handle ()
Note 1 to entry: The two major components of a knife are the blade (3.2.1bolster is considered as part of) and the handle
(3.2.2).
Note 2 to entry: See Figure 1 for examples of a complex and a simple knife (3.1) .).

b) Simple knife
a) Complex knife
Key
1 tip of the blade
2 cutting edge
3 back of the blade
4 choil
5 bolster
6 tang
7 rivet
8 blade
9 handle
Figure 1 — Examples for knives with designation of knife parts
3.2
designDesign structure
3.2.1
blade
thinner part of the knife (3.1) used for cutting and intended to come into contact with food
Note 1 to entry: Characteristics of a flexible blade are given in 8.1.
3.2.2
handle
thicker part of the knife (3.1) used for holding the knife (3.1) safely and not intended to come into contact with
food
Note 1 to entry: The bolster is considered as part of the handle (3.2.2).
Note 2 to entry: Whether the handle needs to comply with regulations for food contact materials depends on local
regulations.
3.2.3
wooden handle
handle, which is made completely made from real wood and thus not suitable for dishwasher cleaning
Note 1 to entry: Handles made from wood parts or textiles, which are included in a resin (in general called ‘micarta’) or
wooden handles, which are completely covered by a lacquer are not included in this definition.
3.2.4
cutting edge
sharpened part of the blade (3.2.1) intended for cutting
Note 1 to entry: The cutting edge (3.2.4) starts at the bottom of the blade (3.2.1) and ends at the tip of the blade (3.2.1).
The back of the blade (3.2.1) is located on the opposite side of the cutting edge (3.2.4).
3.3
sharpness
parameter, which reflects the force needed to cut into a defined test material with a defined cutting movement
3.4
wear resistance
resistance of the cutting edge (3.2.4) against wear, tested by cutting into an abrasive test material
3.5
professional use
use of a knife (3.1) done by a professional in an economic activity
Note 1 to entry: In contrast to the domestic or private use, professional use of knives occurs mainly in the industry (meat
and fish slaughterhouses, butchers, bakeries, etc.) but also includes commercial kitchens (e.g. hotels, and restaurants),)
and food shops.
Note 2 to entry: Professional use in the context of this document focuses in a normal situation for the knife (3.1), where
a sterilization is applied on a regular basis. The sterilization is often performed with boiling water or hot steam. It cannot
be excluded that the knives are used with appropriate gloves immediately after sterilization.
4 General conditions for testing
Unless otherwise specified, the tests shall be carried out at an ambient temperature of 23 °C ± 5 °C.
5 Measurement of lengths
5.1 General
Two dimensions for knives are defined in this document. Tolerance class c (coarse) specified in ISO 2768-1
appliesshall apply to all lengths determined below. Examples for length determination are shown in Figure 2.

b)
a)
c)
d)
Key
1 total length
2 sharpened part of blade
3 blade length
Figure 2 — Examples for determining lengths
NOTE 1 The sum of the blade length and handle length can differ from the total length.
NOTE 2 If dimensions are claimedspecified the definitions in this document apply.
5.2 Total length
The total length (see Figure 2, key 1) is the largest straight connection of the two most distant points of the
knife.
5.3 Blade length
The blade length (Figure 2, key 3) starts from the closest point to the handle which is already sharp to the tip
or to the furthest point of the radius if there is no tip. The shortest connection between the two points is
measured.
NOTE The sharpened part of the blade (see Figure 2) can be shorter than the blade length.
6 Cutting edge types
6.1 Smooth cutting edges
Cutting edges with smooth grinding (see Figure 3) can have different shapes:; they can be double-sided, single-
sided, with several chamfers as well as convex and hollow.

Figure 3 — Knife blade with smooth grinding
6.2 Serrated cutting edges
Cutting edges with serrated grinding have a periodically shaped cutting edge which can be single- or double-
sided grinded. Depending on the type of grinding, two different serrations are defined:
a) for cutting edges with concave serrations (see Figure 4) the curvature of the serration is oriented inwards;
b) for cutting edges with convex serrations (see Figure 5) the curvature of the serration is oriented outwards.
There can also be combinations of concave and convex sections. This document does not make a
differentiation with regard to the spaces in between the serrations.

Figure 4 — Knife blade with concave serrated cutting edge

Figure 5 — Knife blade with convex serrated cutting edge
7 Materials
7.1 Blades
Blades shall be made from metallic materials which ensure the function and durability of knives.
At the current state of the art various low alloyed steels, alloyed steels, corrosion-resistant steels, composite
steels (damascus steels) and coated steels (with organic or inorganic coating) are used as blade materials.
The blade is food contact area.
NOTE Attention is drawn to the requirements of national legislation on food contact for the blade material.
7.2 Handles
The handle is skin contact area.
NOTE Attention is drawn to the requirements of national legislation on skin contact for the handle material.
8 Performance requirements
8.1 Flexible blade
A blade, e.g. of a filleting knife, can be claimed as ‘flexible blade’, if the blade can be successively bent in both
directions at an angle of 45° ± 3° on a plane of at least 50 % of its length during 10 s ± 3 s and remains
undamaged and shows no permanent deformation of more than 3°, when measured in accordance with Clause
B.2, see Figure 6.
Key
c/2 50 % of the blade length
Figure 6 — Bending test
8.2 Sharpness and wear resistance
8.2.1 Sharpness
The sharpness test is still under study and shall be as defined in ISO 8442-5.
8.2.2 Wear resistance
The minimum requirements for knives with smooth cutting edge, when tested according to ISO 8442-5
method ‘wear resistance’ are Initial Cu
...