Ikea recommends that you varnish the butcher-block kitchen furnishings for sanitary reasons. Wood is very good at absorbing all sorts of contaminants that you'd

Ikea recommends that you varnish the butcher-block kitchen furnishings for sanitary reasons. Wood is very good at absorbing all sorts of contaminants that you'd rather not ingest and an absorbent wood surface is difficult if not impossible to sanitize. I completely agree with you regarding the stained and broken-in style. That's why I got it!