Every once in a while, my brain latches onto a notion like a street dog on a pork chop. Over the last few days, it's been this: Why the hell do cutting boards cost so much? Head to a flea market, and a nice one will set you back over $100. Even a cheap piece of flat plastic from Dollar General is gonna cost you at least a few bucks.
I broke down today and did some research. There's nothing out there — at least nothing I could find — that explains why they're so damn expensive. For cutting boards made by individual woodworkers, I suppose it comes down to material costs, craftsmanship, and what people are willing to pay. Large companies like OXO, who pump out kitchen gear all day, likely do extensive market research to determine the highest price we'll tolerate for a cutting board. I can live with that.
What I can't live with is what I uncovered.
In 2022, humanity spent $2.9 billion on cutting boards worldwide. That's the cost of every single piece of Star Wars content produced in the UK by Disney, including The Acolyte (cutting boards might have been a better investment). In West Africa, that money could buy 12.8 billion pounds of rice — enough to feed an insane number of people for a good long time. In 2020, South Korea spent that same amount on 20 fighter jets from the United States.
2.9 billion bucks. On flat pieces of wood, slabs of silicon, or chunks of plastic. Why haven't we developed counters we can comfortably cut food on yet? Why not just do food prep on a plate? Big Cutting Board has us wrapped around their finger, and we're all too blind to see it.
Previously:
• Space Invaders cutting board
• The neurotypicals are smearing butter directly on cutting boards and calling them 'butter boards'
