It’s a common spice found in many kitchens, but certain brands of cinnamon may be hiding a dangerous secret: toxic levels of lead.
Consumer Reports tested 36 ground cinnamon products and spice blends with cinnamon. One out of three contained lead levels above 1 part per million -- the threshold that can trigger a recall in New York state but not nationwide.
“Just a quarter teaspoon of any of those products has more lead than you should consume in an entire day. If you have one of those products, we think you should throw it away,” said Dr. James Rogers, Consumer Reports Director of Food Safety Research and Testing.
This is an important reminder that lead exposure can have serious health consequences, especially for children and during pregnancy. In adults, it’s been linked to kidney damage and hypertension.
So, you may be wondering: how does lead get into cinnamon in the first place?
“Cinnamon trees take about ten years to grow giving ample time to absorb lead from soil and water. Additionally, during the drying process lead can become concentrated,” Rogers explained.
Consumer Reports says most cinnamon sold in the U.S. is imported from Indonesia, Sri Lanka, and Vietnam, where regulations on soil contaminants may be less stringent.
Consumer Reports: Don’t Use
The highest lead levels from Consumer Reports’ tests were found in three lesser-known brands, Mimi’s Products Ground Cinnamon (2.03 ppm), Paras Cinnamon Powder (3.52 ppm), and EGN Cinnamon Powder (2.91 ppm), which are sold mostly in international food markets. Consumer Reports says if you have one of those products, we think you should throw it away. After being informed of the results, only Paras and EGN told Consumer Reports that they would stop selling their products.
Only two of the ten other companies replied: Deep Cinnamon Powder (1.02 ppm) and Yu Yee Brand Ground Cinnamon (1.25). Both said that they tested their product or relied on tests from their suppliers.
Other products Consumer Reports flagged with high levels of lead are:
- Bowl & Basket Ground Cinnamon (1.82 ppm)
- Rani Brand Ground Cinnamon (1.39 ppm)
- Zara Foods Cinnamon Powder (1.27 ppm)
- Three Rivers Cinnamon Stick Powder (1.26 ppm)
- BaiLiFeng Five Spice Powder (1.15ppm)
- Spicy King Five Spices Powder (1.05ppm)
- Badia Cinnamon Powder (1.03 ppm)
Consumer Reports: Best to Use
On the other side, six products had very low or no detectable lead. They are:
- Sadaf Seven Spice (0.15 ppm)
- 365 Whole Foods Market Ground Cinnamon (0.12 ppm)
- Loisa Organic Cinnamon (0.04 ppm)
- Morton & Bassett San Francisco 100% Organic Ground Cinnamon (0.04 ppm)
- Sadaf Cinnamon Powder (0.04 ppm)
- 365 Whole Foods Market Organic Ground Cinnamon (0.02 ppm)
How to protect your family
If you’re wondering what the government is doing about this, there are no federal limits for lead in cinnamon or any other spice. Consumer advocates call for national regulations similar to those in New York. Since 2016, more than 100 spices have been recalled in that state due to heavy metal contamination.
In the meantime, experts recommend choosing cinnamon with the lowest lead levels in Consumer Reports’ tests, sticking with mainstream brands, and limiting overall lead exposure from all sources.
Consumer Reports has informed the Food and Drug Administration of its results. The agency said it could not comment on Consumer Reports’ tests.