Cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs!

  • NotAnotherLemmyUser@lemmy.world
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    3 months ago

    This article didn’t go into it, but here’s a little background info from how some of these heavy metals end up in chocolate (at least):

    The researchers found that cacao plants take up cadmium from the soil, with the metal accumulating in cacao beans as the tree grows. That’s similar to how heavy metals contaminate some other foods.

    But lead seems to get into cacao after beans are harvested. The researchers found that the metal was typically on the outer shell of the cocoa bean, not in the bean itself. Moreover, lead levels were low soon after beans were picked and removed from pods but increased as beans dried in the sun for days. During that time, lead-filled dust and dirt accumulated on the beans. “We collected beans on the ground that were heavily loaded with lead on the outer shell,” DiBartolomeis says.

    https://www.consumerreports.org/health/food-safety/lead-and-cadmium-in-dark-chocolate-a8480295550/

      • NotAnotherLemmyUser@lemmy.world
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        3 months ago

        The link from my quote includes a breakdown of the different types of bars and how much was found in each, so I would compare the kind of chocolate you usually eat, the safest choices were:

        Edit 2: Note this particular study was done on dark chocolate bars. Milk chocolate bars would be more diluted.

        • Mast - Organic Dark Chocolate\80% Cocoa
        • Taza Chocolate - Organic Deliciously Dark Chocolate\70% Cacao
        • Ghirardelli - Intense Dark Chocolate\86% Cacao
        • Ghirardelli - Intense Dark Chocolate Twilight Delight\72% Cacao
        • Valrhona - Abinao Dark Chocolate\85% Cacao

        Even those contained small levels of both, so eating an entire bar all at once is probably not a good idea.

        Also there are other foods that can have it:

        It can be found in many other foods—such as sweet potatoes, spinach, and carrots—and small amounts from multiple sources can add up to dangerous levels. That’s why it’s important to limit exposure when you can.

        https://www.consumerreports.org/health/food-safety/lead-and-cadmium-in-dark-chocolate-a8480295550/

        Edit: comma after ‘eat’