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Because of the shattering dangers of the apparently inferior lime glass that Pyrex uses for manufacturing in the U.S. as exposed by Consumer Reports, I'd like to replace my Pyrex with borosilicate bakeware. Apparently Pyrex used to manufacture their bakeware with borosilicate until about 10-15 years ago in the U.S..

I thought I found a manufacturer (Marinex) that used borosilicate, and though they advertise it as such, based on this report, it turns out that the materials used by Marinex still may not be as safe as "true" borosilicate bakeware.

How can I purchase true (new) borosilicate bakeware from the United States? It doesn't have to be manufactured in the U.S., and I'm open to ordering it from foreign stores that export to the U.S.. Specifically, I'm looking for 13x9 and 11x7 rectangular, and 8x8 square baking dishes.

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    Good luck finding any. Boron is poisonous which means there's a very high waste disposal cost, so borosilicate is generally only used for two niche markets now: lab equipment, and bongs. If you don't want to use metal bakeware then you might have better luck searching for some vintage Corningware or Glasbake/glassbake/flamex on eBay or in your local thrift stores - pretty much the same thermal characteristics as the old boro, just looks nicer.
    – Aaronut
    Mar 10, 2013 at 16:40
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    @JeffAxelrod Arc International owns the license for Pyrex in Europe and apparently they are still making it there: amazon.co.uk/Pyrex-Borosilicate-Square-Roaster-21x21cm/dp/… it may be a matter of time before a US alternative shows up. In the mean time, if you make sure your glassware doesn't go through rapid temperature change, chances of the shatter is much less.
    – MandoMando
    Mar 10, 2013 at 17:14
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    @JeffAxelrod : I can add to the stories -- tried making a yorkshire pudding in a brand new Pyrex dish, which I've done for years in an older one ... and it exploded from just heating it empty. (it's possible that something might've dripped above, I guess, and as it was its first use, it's possible that it had a defect)
    – Joe
    Mar 11, 2013 at 13:08
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    May want to take a look the comparison at Anchor Hocking of borosilicate vs. tempered lime-soda. According to them, lime-soda glass is mechanically stronger and more temperature shock resistant . Also, it breaks into smaller, less dangerous shards. anchorhocking.com/Bakeware_Facts.html#BORSILICATE
    – nullforce
    May 26, 2013 at 4:00
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    @dfeuer: You're confusing the definition of "toxic" according to organizations like the FDA (it is completely safe to cook with) vs. the EPA (dumping large amounts of boron waste into a lake or landfill = bad idea). If you read my original comment a little more carefully, you will surely notice that it was referring specifically to waste disposal and not food safety.
    – Aaronut
    Sep 27, 2014 at 19:21

2 Answers 2

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I believe the following companies advertise that they produce bakeware made out of borosilicate available in the US, :

Luminarc Arcuisine Elegance

I can't speak to the boron/boron plus/zero boron debate, but those are the two I would investigate.

I know that Bodum also advertises borosilicate products, but I'm not sure if they make bakeware.

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  • Are you sure that Luminarc makes glass bakeware? I only know them for producing plates and bowls made of glass which looks like ceramic, in fact their name slowly gets to be used as a generic name for this material around here.
    – rumtscho ♦
    Apr 25, 2013 at 9:06
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    Rumtscho, it's not their main business, but they do make ramekins and what we'd call a glass casserole dish, but they amusingly call a "furn, "which I can only imagine means sort of fun-urn, as in where the ashes of my burn casserole would be. ;)
    – Spencer Soloway
    Apr 25, 2013 at 13:33
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    nice find. By the way, the old Latin word "fornax" meaning "oven" has descendants in many languages, including the English "furnace". So I guess they were trying to create a name which is somehow related to "oven", in parallel to "Dutch oven", without using a word people already connect with a different meaning. But I agree that my analysis is pure speculation and yours is pure fun :)
    – rumtscho ♦
    Apr 25, 2013 at 13:43
  • @rumtscho, I rejected the edit to this answer. I think it should be an independent answer. What do you think?
    – BaffledCook
    Aug 1, 2015 at 9:13
  • @BaffledCook I can't see the edit anymore. But it doesn't matter. Edits are not meant to change the original meaning of a post. If somebody thought to add a different (or more extensive) opinion, they should have posted it as an answer. Rejecting it as an edit is the right thing to do.
    – rumtscho ♦
    Aug 1, 2015 at 14:54
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You can buy Pyrex in the USA imported from Europe that is made of borosilicate glass from a site called IcedTeaPitcher.Com. They sell various kitchen borosilicate glassware including the French-made Pyrex.

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    That could be generalized to "it's a global world - whatever you want, if it is not restricted by customs issues, just find an importer or even import it yourself."
    – rackandboneman
    Mar 15, 2017 at 9:10

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