How a Boos Block Is Made

Boos Blocks may be found in homes and professional kitchens all over the world, but each one is handcrafted in the U.S. A city of just over 12,000 people, Effingham, IL, is home to Boos Block® headquarters, including 330,000 square feet of facilities where you’ll find caring artisans – many of whom have worked at Boos Block for decades.

Anyone who visits our factory is sure to hear the passion that goes into each Boos Block. For everyone else, here’s a sneak peek behind the scenes.

It all starts with sustainable forestry

Our commitment to high-quality products includes a commitment to sustainability. We source only renewable, sustainable North American hardwoods, like northern hard rock maple, American cherry, and American black walnut, from people who use sustainable practices that help keep our forests healthy. This includes harvesting trees that need to be removed while allowing smaller trees to grow and thrive. 

As part of the sourcing process, we also inspect all wood against U.S. NHLA grading standards, a complex process that requires substantial training. This ensures we use the high-quality timber needed to make Boos Blocks so durable.

Patience in the process

When lumber arrives at our facility, we start the drying process. Completing this process with patience and keen attention is essential as the cells of wood contract and expand over time. We stack all wood and allow it to air dry for about 30 to 60 days before placing it in our kilns.  The kiln drying process is regulated closely to ensure the wood doesn’t dry too quickly. Having the proper amount of moisture allows for proper bonding on boards that are glued, and it also helps prevent future warping or cracking.

Finding the beauty under the bark

After the lumber has been dried, our artisans select the best raw materials by grade and length to plan for the proper cutting, making every effort to use as much of the timber as possible. We then rip and cross-cut pieces to size, sawing off rough edges to reveal the wood’s natural beauty. We inspect each piece of wood for knots or imperfections that could affect the durability or performance of the finished Boos Block. Natural variations that meet our quality standards remain, giving each piece its unique character.

Perfecting the wood

For cutting boards or butcher blocks with multiple edge-grain pieces or end-grain designs, we glue, press, and clamp pieces together and let them dry from the outside in. We then sand all boards, inspect them to make sure they’re smooth, and send them to our CNC router department. This stop includes final cuts for size, the addition of recessed finger grips on some boards, and the iconic Boos Block stamp is applied. We finish each Boos Block with our famous Mystery Oil before wrapping it for shipping, so it will be in peak condition when you receive it.

From Effingham to your kitchen

Throughout this process, Boos Blocks go through 26 quality control checkpoints, confirming everything from the moisture of the wood to the smoothness of the surface. It’s a 135 year-old carefully refined process that includes NSF certified products and has made Boos Blocks trusted by home cooks and professional chefs for generations.

Honoring the wood by using every piece 

When you purchase a Boos Block, you can rest assured it’s been crafted with a highly efficient process. We aim for zero waste, collecting all scraps into a chipper that grinds them into sawdust. We use that sawdust in our wood-burning boiler to generate steam, which powers our glue press, heats our factory, and dries lumber in our kiln. Any excess sawdust goes to local farmers, who use it for fertilizer and bedding for their dairy cattle.

We’re proud of our strict standards and the attention that goes into every Boos Block. And whichever cutting board or butcher block you choose, we hope it brings years of joy to your kitchen. As our artisans often say, every piece of wood has its own characteristics. Just like people, each Boos Block is unique.