Looking for delicious, quick, easy recipes? Look no further. Click here.

Silver balls and why I dislike Mark Pollock


silver drageesSilver dragées are the little, jawbreaker-like balls that usually adorn gingerbread houses or pastry confections in small, but beautiful numbers, particularly around the Christmas season. Their little sparkle is like a tiny star on top of a cookie tree. In vain I have searched the shelves for them this year, wanting to use them to adorn my snowflake-themed cake. Mark Pollock is the reason I could not find any silver balls for decorating this year.

Pollock, 56, is an attorney and former student activist in Northern California who sued approximately 100 of the biggest names and smallest vendors – from Martha Stewart Omnimedia to Gloria’s Cake and Candy Supplies – in pastry because he was “morally outraged” at their use of, sale of and implied endorsement of silver dragées. Though they are still legal to sell, companies no longer ship them to California stores and they have been pulled from shelves.

The sugary confections have a real silver coating. Silver is a metal that is bio-accumulative, so it stays in the body forever. Because it is possible to get silver poisoning, Pollock reasoned that the metals will simply build up to toxic levels and harm people. The dragées are sold in small bottles, usually in the cake-decorating aisle of the grocery store, and are labeled “Not for Human Consumption” or “For Decorating Purposes Only” because the FDA does not endorse eating them, though they are considered a food item in Europe.

If you have ever seen a silver dragée, you will know that they are very small. The amount of silver in their coating must also be small. Since the incidence of dragée-related poisoning is very low – I could not find a documented case, though they have been around for well over a century – it stands to reason that people are not eating a sufficient number of dragées over the course of their lifetimes to succumb to silver poisoning. Perhaps I would be concerned if I were downing bottles of silver balls every day. But I really just want to decorate my cookies.

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Tip of the Day

December may have peppermint bark, but have you thought to incorporate the taste of autumn into white chocolate with a rich pumpkin swirl?

RSS NEWSFEEDS

Slashfood Features


Seasons
Spring (74)
Summer (300)
Fall (272)
Winter (77)
What is it?
Beef (635)
Bread (83)
Candy (520)
Cheese (585)
Chocolate (838)
Comfort Food (807)
Condiments (265)
Dairy (567)
Eggs (321)
Fish (378)
Fruit (1064)
Grains (623)
Herbs (10)
Meat (359)
Nuts/seeds (318)
Organic (5)
Pork (404)
Poultry (464)
Rice (57)
Sandwiches (34)
Shellfish (192)
Soups/Salads (122)
Spices (322)
Sugar (434)
Tea (7)
Vegetables (1414)
Holidays
Christmas (133)
Easter (37)
Halloween (99)
Hanukkah (56)
Memorial Day (15)
Mother's Day (37)
New Year's (41)
Passover (11)
St. Patrick's Day (14)
Thanksgiving (205)
Valentine's Day (50)
News
Food Politics (4)
Bakeries (151)
Books (810)
Business (1287)
Celebrities (242)
Coffee shops (194)
Edible Gifts (39)
Farming (467)
Fast Food (385)
Food News (587)
Health & Medical (873)
How To (1433)
Lists (836)
Magazines (509)
New Products (1589)
Newspapers (1632)
On the Blogs (2522)
Raves & Reviews (1189)
Recipes (2495)
Restaurants (1473)
Science (742)
Site Announcements (186)
Stores & Shopping (1023)
Television/Film (736)
Trends (1440)
Vegetarian/Vegan (96)
Features
Cheese Course (74)
Diary of a Distiller (30)
Dining at Our Desks (8)
Festive Family Feasts (9)
Guilty Pleasures (83)
Quizzes (22)
Raising the Bar (23)
Taste Test (18)
The Hungry Bride (34)
The Skinny Chef (67)
Tinfoil Swan (26)
Tip of the Day (379)
Wild Edibles (22)
X Marks the Spot (1)
Back to School (14)
Cocktail Hour (133)
Cocktail Revolution (0)
Cookbook Spotlight (573)
Cooking Without a Recipe (5)
Culinary Kids (235)
Did you know? (458)
Fall Flavors (138)
Feast Your Eyes (411)
Food Gadgets (485)
Food Oddities (1044)
Food Porn (892)
Food Quest (176)
Foodie Flicks (65)
Frugal Food (95)
Garden Party (28)
Hacking Food (109)
Happy Hour (212)
Head to Tail (44)
In Sixty Seconds (738)
Ingredient Spotlight (60)
Leftovers (53)
Light Food (189)
Liquor Cabinet (186)
Our Bloggers (34)
Pop Food (146)
Pumpkin Day (12)
Real Kitchens (85)
Retro cookery (154)
Slashfood Ate (206)
Slashfood Talks (4)
Slow cooking (55)
Super Size Me (121)
The History of... (72)
What's On Tap? (44)
Wine of the Week (53)
YumSugar (55)
What Time Is It?
Breakfast (757)
Dessert (1371)
Dinner (1388)
Hors D'oeuvres (319)
Lunch (1041)
Snacks (1128)
Where Is It?
America (2663)
Europe (515)
France (178)
Italy (174)
Asia (552)
Australia (158)
British Isles (875)
Caribbean (38)
Central Africa (8)
East Coast (582)
Eastern Europe (45)
Islands (59)
Mediterranean (131)
Mexico (42)
Middle East (63)
Midwest Cities (232)
Midwest Rural (74)
New Zealand (63)
North America (95)
Northern Africa (21)
Northern Europe (66)
South Africa (36)
South America (101)
South Asia (125)
Southern States (307)
West Coast (938)
What are you doing?
Baking (833)
Barbecuing (112)
Boiling (130)
Braising (21)
Broiling (37)
Frying (190)
Grilling (212)
Microwaving (40)
Roasting (105)
Slow cooking (34)
Steaming (45)
Choices
Fairtrade (16)
Artisan Foods (163)
Local Eating (149)
Additives
Artificial Sugars (42)
High-fructose corn syrup (21)
MSG (7)
Trans Fats (58)
Libations
Hot chocolate (27)
Soda (175)
Spirits (425)
Beer (535)
Brandy (13)
Champagne (120)
Cocktails (474)
Coffee (419)
Gin (115)
Juice (126)
Liqueurs (81)
Non-alcoholic (27)
Rum (103)
Teas (185)
Tequila (23)
Vodka (164)
Water (90)
Whisky (119)
Wine (765)
Affairs
Celebrations (108)
Closings (14)
Festivals (89)
Holidays (305)
Openings (51)
Parties (246)
Tastings (163)

RESOURCES

Powered by Blogsmith

Featured Stories

 

Most Commented On (60 days)

Twitter Updates

Updates From

Sites We Love

Other Weblogs Inc. Network blogs you might be interested in:

Also on AOL