Cadmium: Should We Be Wary of Chocolate?
Cocoa naturally contains higher levels of cadmium than most other crops. Through quality controls, plot selection, and bean blending, the industry has been adapting for years to keep cadmium levels below regulatory thresholds.
Cadmium is a heavy metal that occurs naturally in certain soils, particularly in the volcanic soils of LatinAmerica . But it can also be found in agricultural soils whenthey have been treated withphosphate-basedmineral fertilizers .The result: it’s found almost everywhere. According tothe French Agency forFood, Environmental and OccupationalHealth & Safety (ANSES), cadmiumis present in 89% of staple foods, and inrelatively high concentrations in organ meats, crustaceans, mollusks, spinach, and chocolate. But it’s not the foods with the highest concentrations of cadmium that are the most toxic to us. “It’s the dose that makes the poison,” notes nutritionist NathalieHutter-Lardeau. “So it’s mainly the foods we eat every day that we need to be careful about —such as bread, pasta, rice, cookies, potatoes, and certain vegetables—where cadmium is present but in lower concentrations.”
