40 replies to this topic

[ta5]

Does anyone sell low cadmium cocoa/cacao powder?

 

Thanks.

 

 

Edit: maybe this should move to the Retailer/Product Discussion?

Edited by ta5, 08 February 2015 - 05:59 PM.

[NilsOlav]

I'm guessing you bought Nativas or some other brand and heard that "Consumer Labs detected cadmium" in it or something right? I suggest you stick with that brand.

 

I have tried a variety of raw cacoa powders on amazon and Nativas still remains the most delicious one. Read their statement on the cadmium content of their cacoa. It's completely safe, don't buy into the fear-mongering of competitors/marketers:

 

http://navitasnatura...op65_cacao.html

[albedo]

I found high Cadmium content in my most recent hair analysis with (albeit lower) lead. One of the food I tend to be too indulgent to is high % cacao content (75%, 85%) chocolate bars. Do you think this can be the main culprit?

[pamojja]

Am a big dark chocolate consumer myself, with about 40 g/d of ~80% chocolate, tablespoons of powder in my morning muesli not counted. And did HTMAs each year, now 5 in total.

 

With hair tissue mineral analysis a once off value may not mean much. During that time always stayed within 'normal' ranges. Even though still in the normal range saw decreases of 90% in Barium, 70% in Strontium, 30% in Aluminum and 25% in Mercury - but a doubling in Arsenic or a 15 times increase with Uranium (end of 2014 - go figure).

 

I found high Cadmium content in my most recent hair analysis with (albeit lower) lead. One of the food I tend to be too indulgent to is high % cacao content (75%, 85%) chocolate bars. Do you think this can be the main culprit?

 

Guess that with a vulnerability on your side, since chocolate and me made Lead in hair remaining the same and Cadmium levels halved.

 

Edited by pamojja, 29 June 2015 - 08:08 PM.

[Dorian Grey]

Find out what kind of chocolate Jeanne Calment ate...  Lived to 122 on a kilo/week of chocolate (add port wine and a few cigarettes for best results).  

 

https://en.wikipedia.../Jeanne_Calment

 

"Calment ascribed her longevity and relatively youthful appearance for her age to a diet rich in olive oil^[4] (which she also rubbed onto her skin), as well as a diet of port wine, and ate nearly one kilogram (2.2 lb) of chocolate every week. She also credited her calmness, saying, "That's why they call me Calment."^[17]Calment reportedly remained mentally intact until her very end"

[albedo]

Checking about possible causes I found THIS:

 

"..The Scientific Panel on Contaminants in the Food Chain (CONTAM) was asked by the European Commission to assess the risks to human health related to the presence of cadmium in foodstuffs. To provide an updated assessment of exposure from foodstuffs, about 140,000 data covering the period from 2003 to 2007 on cadmium occurrence in various food commodities were received from 20 Member States and considered by the CONTAM Panel. The highest cadmium concentrations were detected in the following food commodities: seaweed, fish and seafood, chocolate, and foods for special dietary uses. For most foods only a small percentage of the analysed samples (<5 %) exceeded the maximum level (ML), where specified. Up to 20 % of the samples were above the MLs for celeriac, horse meat, fish, bivalve molluscs other than oysters and cephalopods.."

 

Go figure it out ...

 

 

 

[brosci]

I've been using cocoavia powder with good success.  Mars, a candy manufacturer,  doesn't like the most ideal company for getting a quality health supplement, but from the reports it looks fairly legit.  The taste is great in a whey smoothie.  On consumerlab, the cadmium concentration is listed at a minimum value, while flavanols are listed near the top of the chart.  Cocoawell also looks like they make a decent extract.

 

Mycotoxins are also a slight concern with cocoa.  http://www.ncbi.nlm....les/PMC3712181/

 

http://labs.naturaln...oods-Cacao.html

 

Interestingly, the organic chocolate from Peru seems to be lowest in cadmium and mycotoxins.

Edited by brosci, 16 July 2015 - 10:49 PM.

[albedo]

Interesting article by Dr Greger on Cadmium:

How to Reduce Your Dietary Cadmium Absorption

http://nutritionfact...f9f44a-23551601

[fntms]

This article finds that phytates reduce absorption, so maybe inositol hexaphosphate (phytic acid) would be useful? I take 1g per day to reduce iron, maybe it also reduces cadmium stored in the body?
I also take micronised citrus pectin, which helps heavy metal detox and also silica to chelate aluminum...

[Skyguy2005]

This article finds that phytates reduce absorption, so maybe inositol hexaphosphate (phytic acid) would be useful? I take 1g per day to reduce iron, maybe it also reduces cadmium stored in the body?
I also take micronised citrus pectin, which helps heavy metal detox and also silica to chelate aluminum...

 

Phytic acid prevents Alzheimers

 

http://www.ncbi.nlm....pubmed/20930278

Edited by Skyguy2005, 19 October 2015 - 07:43 PM.

[ta5]

Sci Total Environ. 2015 Nov 15;533:205-14.
Concentration of cadmium in cacao beans and its relationship with soil cadmium in southern Ecuador.

Chavez E1, He ZL2, Stoffella PJ3, Mylavarapu RS4, Li YC5, Moyano B6, Baligar VC7.

Cadmium (Cd) content in cacao beans above a critical level (0.6 mg kg(-1)) has raised concerns in the consumption of cacao-based chocolate. Little is available regarding Cd concentration in soil and cacao in Ecuador. The aim of this study was to determine the status of Cd in both, soils and cacao plants, in southern Ecuador. Soil samples were collected from 19 farms at 0-5, 5-15, 15-30, and 30-50 cm depths, whereas plant samples were taken from four nearby trees. Total recoverable and extractable Cd were measured at the different soil depths. Total recoverable Cd ranged from 0.88 to 2.45 and 0.06 to 2.59, averaged 1.54 and 0.85 mg kg(-1), respectively in the surface and subsurface soils whereas the corresponding values for M3-extractable Cd were 0.08 to 1.27 and 0.02 to 0.33 with mean values of 0.40 and 0.10 mg kg(-1). Surface soil in all sampling sites had total recoverable Cd above the USEPA critical level for agricultural soils (0.43 mg kg(-1)), indicating that Cd pollution occurs. Since both total recoverable and M3-extractable Cd significantly decreased depth wise, anthropogenic activities are more likely the source of contamination. Cadmium in cacao tissues decreased in the order of beans>shell>>leaves. Cadmium content in cacao beans ranged from 0.02 to 3.00, averaged 0.94 mg kg(-1), and 12 out of 19 sites had bean Cd content above the critical level. Bean Cd concentration was highly correlated with M3- or HCl-extractable Cd at both the 0-5 and 5-15 cm depths (r=0.80 and 0.82 for M3, and r=0.78 and 0.82 for HCl; P<0.01). These results indicate that accumulation of Cd in surface layers results in excessive Cd in cacao beans and M3- or HCl-extractable Cd are suitable methods for predicting available Cd in the studied soils.

PMID: 26172587

[normalizing]

thats just for ecuador, i wonder the differences in soil cadmium from all places producing cacao

[ta5]

I found Wilderness Family Naturals (never heard of them before) sells cacao powder and claims:

Both our Raw Cacao Powder and Our Raw Cacao Nibs have been tested for heavy metals. Mercury, Lead, Arsenic and Cadmium are all below detectable levels!

 

Cacao Powder, Raw Certified Organic, Non-Fermented:

Raw Cacao Laboratory Testing Results
*ppm = parts per million
Non-Fermented Raw Cacao Powder (2 different suppliers)
8/6/2015
Arsenic   0.049 ppm
Cadmium   0.704 ppm
Lead   0.288 ppm
Mercury   <0.02 ppm
6/9/2015
Arsenic   0.037 ppm
Cadmium   0.674 ppm
Lead   0.154 ppm
Mercury   <0.01 ppm

 

Cacao Powder, Raw, Certified Organic, Fermented:

Raw Cacao Laboratory Testing Results

*ppm = parts per million

Fermented, Raw Cacao Powder

8/31/2015
Arsenic   0.01 ppm
Cadmium   0.548 ppm
Lead   0.05 ppm
Mercury   <0.005 ppm

 

I'm not associated with them, and have yet to order any, but it's pretty cool that they test. I'm actually impressed. I'm on a break from cacao right now, but I will probably try this next. I'm also curious what non-fermented tastes like. I assume that all the other cacao powders I've tried are fermented.

 

Although, they say the metals "are all below detectable levels!", but then the numbers show they were all detectable except Mercury. Hmm.

[brosci]

I found Wilderness Family Naturals (never heard of them before) sells cacao powder and claims:

Both our Raw Cacao Powder and Our Raw Cacao Nibs have been tested for heavy metals. Mercury, Lead, Arsenic and Cadmium are all below detectable levels!

 

Cacao Powder, Raw Certified Organic, Non-Fermented:

Raw Cacao Laboratory Testing Results
*ppm = parts per million
Non-Fermented Raw Cacao Powder (2 different suppliers)
8/6/2015
Arsenic   0.049 ppm
Cadmium   0.704 ppm
Lead   0.288 ppm
Mercury   <0.02 ppm
6/9/2015
Arsenic   0.037 ppm
Cadmium   0.674 ppm
Lead   0.154 ppm
Mercury   <0.01 ppm

 

Cacao Powder, Raw, Certified Organic, Fermented:

Raw Cacao Laboratory Testing Results

*ppm = parts per million

Fermented, Raw Cacao Powder

8/31/2015
Arsenic   0.01 ppm
Cadmium   0.548 ppm
Lead   0.05 ppm
Mercury   <0.005 ppm

 

I'm not associated with them, and have yet to order any, but it's pretty cool that they test. I'm actually impressed. I'm on a break from cacao right now, but I will probably try this next. I'm also curious what non-fermented tastes like. I assume that all the other cacao powders I've tried are fermented.

 

Although, they say the metals "are all below detectable levels!", but then the numbers show they were all detectable except Mercury. Hmm.

I've tried samples of their fermented cacao powder, unfermented cacao powder, fermented nibs, and unfermented nibs.  I think I prefer the fermented options -- they seem to have a stronger, more chocolate-like flavor.  Although, I could see keeping both options around (for when you might want a milder flavor?)  The unfermented nibs are pretty mild and nut-like.  They also have a post up that details the antioxidant levels -- you don't lose too much going with the fermented options.  I would be curious if fermentation might increase any potential anti-nutrients in the way of mycotoxins, or if it would reduce anti-nutrients like phytates.

 

FWIW, the soaked+sprouted+dehydrated nut mixes from Wilderness Family are great, although I wish they would include the harvest date.

Edited by brosci, 19 April 2016 - 03:13 AM.

[normalizing]

whats the deal with fermentation of cacao? do they use bacteria for this or how is it done and whats the idea behind it, is it perhaps making it more tasty or stronger or just what?

[ta5]

J Agric Food Chem. 2015 Nov 18;63(45):9948-53.

Effect of fermentation and drying on cocoa polyphenols.

Albertini B1, Schoubben A1, Guarnaccia D2, Pinelli F3, Della Vecchia M4, Ricci M1, Di Renzo GC5, Blasi P6.

Cocoa seed polyphenols have demonstrated interesting beneficial effects in humans. Most polyphenols contained in fresh seeds are chemically modified during fermentation, drying, and cocoa powder or chocolate production. The improvement of these procedures to obtain a high-polyphenol-content cocoa is highly desirable. To this aim, a field investigation on the effect of fermentation and natural drying on fine flavor National cocoa (cacao Nacional) was performed. Cocoa seeds were fermented for 6 days and, every day, samples were sun-dried and analyzed for polyphenol content and antioxidant power. During the first 2 days of fermentation, Folin-Ciocalteu and FRAP tests evidenced a significant reduction of polyphenol content and antioxidant capacity, respectively. Changes during the following days of fermentation were less significant. Epicatechin, the most studied member of the catechin family, followed a similar pathway of degradation. Data confirmed the high impact of fermentation and drying on cocoa seed polyphenols. Fermentation and drying are, on the one hand, necessary to obtain cocoa flavor and palatability but, on the other hand, are responsible for greatly compromising polyphenol content. To obtain high-polyphenol-content cocoa, the existing fermentation, drying, and manufacturing protocols should be scientifically reviewed to understand and modify the critical steps.

PMID: 26086521

[Leni]

I would be interested to know too where to find low cadmium cocoa - rather cocoa beans or nibs than powder actually. So giving this thread a bump.

 

A few years back Consumerlabs published some test results that among others showed the cacao powder of Navitas Naturals had a high cadmium content.

If I remember it well some products from Bali had a lower cadmium content, which seemed to indicate better soil conditions - with regard to cadmium levels at least. I bought Balinese cocoa from Big Tree Farms as well as Earth Cicle Organics Balinese nibs. In 2015 You Sow published lab test results that indicated the Cadmium content of these Earth Cicle Organics cacao nibs were above the safe harbor threshold of California’s Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act - also rather high.

I gave up on the cocoa alltogether after that. Would love to start eating it again however, but it seems difficult to find cocoa with lower cadmium-levels.

[sthira]

...I gave up on the cocoa alltogether after that. Would love to start eating it again however, but it seems difficult to find cocoa with lower cadmium-levels.

Yeah I hear you loud and clear: I love chocolate more than almost anything else I put in my mouth.

Regarding cadmium, though, see my old pals over in the CR Society forum discuss lead (from gasoline) as perhaps even more prevalent and detrimental than cadmium in various chocolate products.

This is a little sad, but well worth reading: https://www.crsociet...products/page-1

And so still I guess no one knows how much cadmium or lead is embedded within each item of product from each company; but maybe we can help minimize cadmium's impact by generally eating more plants (veganism a la Greger, e.g.) and/or perhaps (modestly) supplementing with zinc (of course a zinc product that's balanced consciously with copper...)

It's a jungle in here, out there, inside and out.

[Oakman]

I would be interested to know too where to find low cadmium cocoa - rather cocoa beans or nibs than powder actually. So giving this thread a bump.

 

A few years back Consumerlabs published some test results that among others showed the cacao powder of Navitas Naturals had a high cadmium content.

If I remember it well some products from Bali had a lower cadmium content, which seemed to indicate better soil conditions - with regard to cadmium levels at least. I bought Balinese cocoa from Big Tree Farms as well as Earth Cicle Organics Balinese nibs. In 2015 You Sow published lab test results that indicated the Cadmium content of these Earth Cicle Organics cacao nibs were above the safe harbor threshold of California’s Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act - also rather high.

I gave up on the cocoa alltogether after that. Would love to start eating it again however, but it seems difficult to find cocoa with lower cadmium-levels.

 

Consumerslabs.com updated their cocoa rating 8/2/17, testing some new products to rate along with existing ones. Ghirardelli Intense Dark 86% & Bakers's Unsweetened 100% had no lead, no cadmium, so look like good bets, although unsweetened might be bitter. I got the former and it's pretty decent, but a bit more bitter still than their Semi-sweet Premium baking bar, which I like as well (no rating on that).

[joelcairo]

However Ghirardelli was one of 17 companies identified as having cadmium and/or lead in their products in 2016. It depends whether this is new corporate policy or they just happened to buy a shipment of cocoa from a low-metals region.

[Leni]

Exactly what JoelCairo points out with his message: there doesn't seem to be much consistency in the cadmium-content of the cocoa from the same brand/company either. Different batch (harvested from different farm/region?); significant difference in heavy metal content, it appears. 

The results of the lab tests some companies get performed themselves on the cocoa they sell, sometimes also significantly differs from the lab test results for example Consumerlab publishes. Wasn't it Navitas Naturals that mentioned they had different labs perform tests on their cocoa products and these high Cadmium-levels had not been noted – after Consumerlab published their worrisome test results?

Confusing at best. I guess ideally each separate batch of cocoa would be tested by an independent/third-party lab. (That of course is never going to happen).

 

(Off-topic but this makes me slightly annoyed with the 'all-organic, all raw, cold processed, trust in us if you care about your health'-slogans that ought to justify the high price of a product that in fact may have a higher heavy metal content than the regular 1$ 90% cocoa chocolate bar in the supermarket).

 

Thanks for posting that link Sthira, indeed lead is a concern too.

Edited by Leni, 25 September 2017 - 07:17 PM.

[aconita]

Cadmium and other metals in cacao comes from the soil where the plants grows, Ecuador is a bad place for cadmium for example, one way to would be to buy cacao grown in countries with low heavy metals in the soil, likely easier and more reliable than the certificates of analysis.

 

Obviously this doesn't apply to chocolate bars since brands buy raw cacao from wherever it is cheaper or they like better, certainly not for the heavy metals content.

 

By the way, epicatechins, one of the most interesting components of cacao, are destroyed by alcanization (Dutch process) and all chocolate has been Dutched as is 99% of the cacao powder on the market. 

[Leni]

Thanks Aconita.

Actually, personally I was (as stated in my second post above) searching for cocoa beans and nibs, so Dutching would in that sense not be an issue, but you are certainly right of course that a lot of cocoa powders are Dutched and are better avoided. Usually that is mentioned on the label of the product though.

 

Indeed (as mentioned in my first post): soil is of course the main determinant of the heavy metal content of the harvested cocoa (processing aside). But the problem is also this, (as described in my second post and this is why I jokingly said you may as well buy a cheap chocolate bar): in one lab test the Cd-content of the cocoa product a brand sells may be on the lower side of the spectrum; whereas a few years later for example Consumerlabs may publish new test results that shows an excessively high Cd-content in the cocoa product of the same brand (this was the case for a Ghirardelli cocoa product, for example).

As Joelcairo mentioned with regard to Ghirardelli: did the brand/company get their cocoa from a different region and is this the cause of these surprising fluctuations in lab test results? Personally I wouldn't know, but it sounds like a reasonable explanation. What surprises me personally however, is that the lab test results (I believe in 2014, would have to look it up) from Consumerlabs seemed to indicate cocoa from Bali had a lower heavy metal content (or at least relatively lower Cd-content).

 

Based on these test results I thus started buying Balinese cocoa nibs from among others Earth Circle Organics and Indonesian nibs from Big Tree Farm (as I mentioned in my second post). I also found a direct source to buy cocoa beans from in Bali. To my surprise in 2015/2016 YouSow published lab test results that showed the Cd-content of these Balinese Earth Circle Organics nibs were excessively high (higher than California's safe harbor limit).

Earth Circle Organics has this slogan “In superfoods we trust”, as such my joke about slogans of these companies charging steeper prices to sell you “superfoods” that “we trust” – that may as well have the same amounts of heavy metals as your 1$ chocolate bar in the supermarket (Dutching aside).

Perhaps the heavy metal content of the soil differs a lot per much smaller geographical regions than I suspected - so cocoa beans from one region in Bali have much lower heavy metal content than cocoa beans from a different region in Bali. to name an example? For now: I'm not sure where to get my cocoa beans from (it's not that different for tea actually).

Edited by Leni, 26 September 2017 - 10:33 PM.

[ironfistx]

I eat between 25 and 50g of Ghiradelli chocolate 86% every day.  I buy it specifically because it was listed as not having poisonous substances in it.

[brosci]

I've got a new favorite cacao product -- the Gundry MD "heart defense" powder with Acticoa cacao + NeuroFactor coffee berry extract.  I believe this product conforms to the strictest EU standards for contaminants and contains the highest concentrations of polyphenols.  The mix includes just enough stevia to make it rich and mocha-y (rather than bitter and muddy.)

[Moondancer]

I've got a new favorite cacao product -- the Gundry MD "heart defense" powder with Acticoa cacao + NeuroFactor coffee berry extract.  I believe this product conforms to the strictest EU standards for contaminants and contains the highest concentrations of polyphenols.  The mix includes just enough stevia to make it rich and mocha-y (rather than bitter and muddy.)

 

That stuff looks unaffordable. First time I see cocoa sold for these prices.  Where is the research behind Dr. Gundry's stuff? With such prices he'd better have a whole bunch of research to back his claims up.

How do you know the product conforms to the strictest EU standards for contaminants and containsthe highest concentrations of polyphenols? Any lab results to confirm those claims?

 

Dr. Gundry of course is right that cocoa from the Kuna's should have some extra-ordinary properties, but to use that info and then not confirm he actually uses cocoa from the Kuna's himself? Does he use cocoa from the Kuna's in this product? I can't find it anywhere.

[ironfistx]

I've got a new favorite cacao product -- the Gundry MD "heart defense" powder with Acticoa cacao + NeuroFactor coffee berry extract.  I believe this product conforms to the strictest EU standards for contaminants and contains the highest concentrations of polyphenols.  The mix includes just enough stevia to make it rich and mocha-y (rather than bitter and muddy.)

 

I'll pass.  I am allergic to Stevia.

Edited by ironfistx, 29 September 2017 - 11:01 PM.

[Moondancer]

 

I've got a new favorite cacao product -- the Gundry MD "heart defense" powder with Acticoa cacao + NeuroFactor coffee berry extract.  I believe this product conforms to the strictest EU standards for contaminants and contains the highest concentrations of polyphenols.  The mix includes just enough stevia to make it rich and mocha-y (rather than bitter and muddy.)

 

I'll pass.  I am allergic to Stevia.

 

Besides the fact still not one piece of research has been posted to back up these claims about Dr. Gundry's marvelous cocoa powder that goes for $89 (with a once in a lifetime special price of $49) per batch you mean?

[brosci]

This is the cocoa -- https://en.wikipedia...lebaut#Products

 

"Acticoa contains higher levels of polyphenol antioxidants than any other chocolate."

 

And here's the coffee fruit:

 

http://www.futureceu...cts/neurofactor

 

The flax is also worth mentioning as it's in the top 10 list from this paper on the "identification of the 100 richest dietary sources of polyphenols": http://www.nature.co...ml#figure-title

 

You could easily throw this together by picking up Acticoa + NeuroFactor... or just using some random brand of cacao powder and coffee fruit.  I wasn't going by the price but by the formulation.

[ta5]

In addition to low cadmium, I wonder if there is any low acrylamide cacao powders?

 

Determination of acrylamide in coffee and chocolate by pressurised fluid extraction and liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry.

"Using the optimised method, 20 coffee and 15 chocolate samples collected from Valencian (Spain) supermarkets, were investigated for acrylamide, yielding median levels of 146 microg kg(-1) in coffee and 102 microg kg(-1) in chocolate.