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Via news article : https://www.cbsnews.com/news/dark-chocolate-metals-lead-consumer-reports-hersheys-trader-joes/ https://www.cbsnews.com/news/dark-chocolate-me

Via news article : https://www.cbsnews.com/news/dark-chocolate-metals-lead-consumer-reports-hersheys-trader-joes/ https://www.cbsnews.com/news/dark-chocolate-metals-lead-cons...

jeffbee 4y ago
We must go deeper: https://www.consumerreports.org/health/food-safety/lead-and-cadmium-in-dark-chocolate-a8480295550/ https://www.consumerreports.org/health/food-safety/lead-and-... This source article contains the key information that the heavy metals are not contaminants introduced by the processors, they are present in the beans.
- kristopolous 4y ago
  That's what I was expecting. Calling out for botanists to weigh in here - is there something that makes chocolate uniquely susceptible to this and if so, is it part of a class of other plants we typically eat? And lastly, this is for food chemists, is there a reliable way to remove such things in the manufacturing that can be added?
  - SideburnsOfDoom 4y ago
    Bioaccumulation? It does happen with heavy metals and plants. Soil quality is the next question. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bioaccumulation https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bioaccumulation https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/02652030500387554 https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/026520305003875...
  - Semaphor 4y ago
    Your second question is answered in the article: > For lead, that will mean changes in harvesting and manufacturing practices, says Danielle Fugere, president of As You Sow. Such practices could include minimizing soil contact with beans as they lie in the sun, and drying beans on tables or clean tarps away from roads or with protective covers, so lead-contaminated dust won’t land on them. Another option is finding ways to remove metal contaminants when beans are cleaned at factories, Fugere says. > Solving for cadmium is trickier, though it is possible, DiBartolomeis says. Carefully breeding or genetically engineering plants to take up less of the heavy metal could help, though that could take several years. Other potential options include replacing older cacao trees with younger ones, because cadmium levels tend to increase as the plants get older, and removing or treating soil known to be contaminated with cadmium.
  - deleted 4y ago
    [deleted]
  - rhplus 4y ago
    Cacao grows in rainforests, so perhaps they’re adapted to rich soils that over time have become net accumulators of heavy metals. There’s examples of other plants that thrive in the presence of heavy metals, such as this one that “bleeds” nickel rich sap: https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-45398434.amp https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-45398434.amp
    - yyyk 4y ago
      Ah, so Tiberium is technically possible...
  - passwordoops 4y ago
    Generally plants are excellent at removing metals from the environment and concentrating them in different tissues, depending on the species and metal. Poplar trees, for example, have often been used for remediation of Mercury contamination of souls Not sure about the specifics of cocoa, but not beyond the pale to see cadmium, for example, be concentrated in the beans. As for removal from food stuffs, it really depends on how the metals are bound to the plant material. Could be as simple as heating up in a vat with agitation, to requiring something so drastic it changes the nature of the chocolate. Best way is to reduce the amount that can be integrated by the plant, but good luck with that. The farmers would probably have to import heavy-metals reduced soil
  - Reason077 4y ago
    Not a botanist, but this is not unique to cocoa. Rice, for example, is known to take up arsenic, cadmium, and other nasties from soils. But it varies significantly depending on the rice variety and where it is gown. Basmati rice grown in California, Pakistan, and India is known to have low levels of arsenic compared to most other types of rice.
- jt2190 4y ago
  > metals are not contaminants introduced by the processors, they are present in the beans. That’s true of the cadmium, but not the lead: > … [L]ead 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.
- Semaphor 4y ago
  Link for Europeans: https://12ft.io/proxy?q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.consumerreports.org%2Fhealth%2Ffood-safety%2Flead-and-cadmium-in-dark-chocolate-a8480295550%2F https://12ft.io/proxy?q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.consumerreports.or...
mistersquid 4y ago
The referenced study treats dark chocolate but, since cacao is cacao, wouldn't milk chocolate confected from these beans also have commensurately elevated levels of cadmium and lead? And, if so, shouldn't this extrapolation be communicated to consumers?
- Reason077 4y ago
  Milk chocolate contains significantly less cacao than dark chocolate. Typically 20-25% cocoa solids, where as dark chocolate is in the 50-90% range. So it should have proportionately less cadmium etc per unit of weight.

Via news article : https://www.cbsnews.com/news/dark-chocolate-metals-lead-consumer-reports-hersheys-trader-joes/ https://www.cbsnews.com/news/dark-chocolate-metals-lead-cons...

jeffbee 4y ago

We must go deeper: https://www.consumerreports.org/health/food-safety/lead-and-cadmium-in-dark-chocolate-a8480295550/ https://www.consumerreports.org/health/food-safety/lead-and-... This source article contains the key information that the heavy metals are not contaminants introduced by the processors, they are present in the beans.

kristopolous 4y ago
That's what I was expecting. Calling out for botanists to weigh in here - is there something that makes chocolate uniquely susceptible to this and if so, is it part of a class of other plants we typically eat? And lastly, this is for food chemists, is there a reliable way to remove such things in the manufacturing that can be added?
- SideburnsOfDoom 4y ago
  Bioaccumulation? It does happen with heavy metals and plants. Soil quality is the next question. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bioaccumulation https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bioaccumulation https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/02652030500387554 https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/026520305003875...
- Semaphor 4y ago
  Your second question is answered in the article: > For lead, that will mean changes in harvesting and manufacturing practices, says Danielle Fugere, president of As You Sow. Such practices could include minimizing soil contact with beans as they lie in the sun, and drying beans on tables or clean tarps away from roads or with protective covers, so lead-contaminated dust won’t land on them. Another option is finding ways to remove metal contaminants when beans are cleaned at factories, Fugere says. > Solving for cadmium is trickier, though it is possible, DiBartolomeis says. Carefully breeding or genetically engineering plants to take up less of the heavy metal could help, though that could take several years. Other potential options include replacing older cacao trees with younger ones, because cadmium levels tend to increase as the plants get older, and removing or treating soil known to be contaminated with cadmium.
- deleted 4y ago
  [deleted]
- rhplus 4y ago
  Cacao grows in rainforests, so perhaps they’re adapted to rich soils that over time have become net accumulators of heavy metals. There’s examples of other plants that thrive in the presence of heavy metals, such as this one that “bleeds” nickel rich sap: https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-45398434.amp https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-45398434.amp
  - yyyk 4y ago
    Ah, so Tiberium is technically possible...
- passwordoops 4y ago
  Generally plants are excellent at removing metals from the environment and concentrating them in different tissues, depending on the species and metal. Poplar trees, for example, have often been used for remediation of Mercury contamination of souls Not sure about the specifics of cocoa, but not beyond the pale to see cadmium, for example, be concentrated in the beans. As for removal from food stuffs, it really depends on how the metals are bound to the plant material. Could be as simple as heating up in a vat with agitation, to requiring something so drastic it changes the nature of the chocolate. Best way is to reduce the amount that can be integrated by the plant, but good luck with that. The farmers would probably have to import heavy-metals reduced soil
- Reason077 4y ago
  Not a botanist, but this is not unique to cocoa. Rice, for example, is known to take up arsenic, cadmium, and other nasties from soils. But it varies significantly depending on the rice variety and where it is gown. Basmati rice grown in California, Pakistan, and India is known to have low levels of arsenic compared to most other types of rice.
jt2190 4y ago
> metals are not contaminants introduced by the processors, they are present in the beans. That’s true of the cadmium, but not the lead: > … [L]ead 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.
Semaphor 4y ago
Link for Europeans: https://12ft.io/proxy?q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.consumerreports.org%2Fhealth%2Ffood-safety%2Flead-and-cadmium-in-dark-chocolate-a8480295550%2F https://12ft.io/proxy?q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.consumerreports.or...

mistersquid 4y ago

The referenced study treats dark chocolate but, since cacao is cacao, wouldn't milk chocolate confected from these beans also have commensurately elevated levels of cadmium and lead? And, if so, shouldn't this extrapolation be communicated to consumers?

Reason077 4y ago
Milk chocolate contains significantly less cacao than dark chocolate. Typically 20-25% cocoa solids, where as dark chocolate is in the 50-90% range. So it should have proportionately less cadmium etc per unit of weight.