In August of 2018 I tested yet another Ceramcor Xtrema “Lead-Free” pan that ended up being positive for lead.
This pan was purchased direct from the company, c. November of 2016.
These pans are advertised and promoted as being metals-free, and specifically as being lead-free — yet when they are tested with an XRF instrument the coatings have consistently tested positive for lead, as well as several other metals.
While the pans DO test positive for metals with an XRF, the owner of the company has shared that the pans have passed leach-testing, which is –unfortunately – the only current Federal testing requirement for cookware. One cannot reliably infer from leach-testing results (from testing done at the time of manufacture) what might happen over time as surfaces (especially glazed surfaces on a ceramic base) break down with normal or heavy use long-term.
XRF testing detects metals present regardless of leaching potential or other criteria.
The owner of the company that makes these pans continues to adamantly insist that the fact that his pans have passed leach-testing somehow means “there are no metals” in his cookware, even though the XRF test results clearly contradict his statements.
Scroll down to see the exact XRF readings for the pan pictured below.
We got “lucky” on this particular pan, as it arrived broken from shipping, so it was easy to also test the substrate (as well as the exterior glazed surface) this time, and quantify what the metals are there, so that was very interesting.
As I said, the manufacturer of this product continues to insist his products are “lead-free” — even though components are positive for trace lead (the glaze/ substrate), and very high levels of lead (and in this case, also cadmium) in the label fused onto the bottom of every piece)!
There are several other posts on my blog about these pans, please read them for background.
The simple solution for this manufacturer:
- Stop claiming your product is “lead-free”.
- Find a lead-free alternative for the permanently affixed leaded label on the bottom of the pan (and/or consider removing the leaded label altogether — a quick-fix for the moment.)
Interior of Pan: 9 metals found in the glaze
(Black Glazed Food Surface, Flat Bottom). NOTE: if you compare these levels to the (very minimal) levels of metals found in the bare cross section of the pan, you can deduce that the difference (where the levels of the metals are greater in the glazed section) is the metals content of the glaze (vs. the substrate.)
This is concerning because the manufacturer also markets/advertises and asserts that these pans are specifically “better than stainless steel” because they “do not contain the metals” that stainless steel does. As you can see below – the main components of stainless steel (Chromium, Nickel and Iron) are also present in these pans. [Additionally, I have recently read some pretty scary things about cobalt and cobalt poisoning – you might want to Google that!]
Related Post: What is Stainless Steel
While I personally do not currently have any concern with stainless steel pots and pans — and they (along with cast iron and clear glass) are among my preferred cookware, I think it could also be easily argued that if there were a toxicity concern with these elements, having these metals in a glaze on a ceramic pot (vs. bound in a metal alloy, as they are in stainless steel) might make them potentially more bio-available (even though the levels are obviously much lower.) Glaze on ceramics is also subject to eventual wear and possible crazing, chalking, chipping, breakage, etc. and becoming compromised with heavy use (vs. stainless steel).
- Lead (Pb): 74 +/- 15 ppm
- Barium (Ba): 597 +/- 55 ppm
- Chromium (Cr): 12,900 +/- 800 ppm
- Zinc (Zn): 4,879 +/- 184 ppm
- Nickel (Ni): 2,417 +/- 163 ppm
- Iron (Fe): 19,100 +/- 700 ppm
- Bismuth (Bi): 106 +/- 18 ppm
- Cobalt (Co): 9,376 +/- 391 ppm
- Manganese (Mn): 1,466 +/- 317 ppm
Center of Bottom of Pan: 13 metals found
(Permanently affixed label in center of bottom). This is the surface that is against a flame or heating element when the pan is in use.
- Lead (Pb): 7,258 +/- 201 ppm
- Cadmium (Cd): 567 +/- 28 ppm
- Barium (Ba): 688 +/- 67 ppm
- Selinium (Se): 358 +/- 35 ppm
- Tin (Sn): 214-+/- 21 ppm
- Zinc (Zn): 5,263 +/- 206 ppm
- Nickel (Ni): 776 +/- 111
- Iron (Fe): 6,036 +/- 374
- Bismuth (Bi): 314 +/- 39
- Vanadium (V): 9,169 +/- 636
- Titanium (Ti): 1,773 +/- 351
- Cobalt (Co): 3,784 +/- 251
- Manganese (Mn): 957 +/- 386
Cross Section of Pan: only four metals found
(Substrate: beige/pink ceramic base from broken side of pan)
- Lead (Pb): 25 +/- 12 ppm
- Zinc (Zn): 80 +/- 21 ppm
- Iron (Fe): 3,369 +/- 255 ppm
- Bismuth (Bi): 153 +/- 17 ppm
Interior (food surface) of lid: 11 metals found
- Lead (Pb): 120 +/- 18 ppm
- Barium (Ba): 453 +/- 55 ppm
- Chromium (Cr): 9,744 +/- 419 ppm
- Zinc (Zn): 4,869 +/- 188 ppm
- Nickel (Ni): 2,326 +/- 165 ppm
- Iron (Fe): 21,400 +/- 700 ppm
- Bismuth (Bi): 136 +/- 20 ppm
- Vanadium (V): 1,069 +/- 144 ppm
- Titanium (Ti): 2161 +/- 236 ppm
- Cobalt (Co): 9,506 +/- 405 ppm
- Manganese (Mn): 1,012 +/- 321 ppm
As always, please let me know if you have any questions.
Thank you for reading and for sharing my posts!
Please also consider making a contribution in support of my independent consumer goods testing and advocacy work. Even just sharing this post on your social media channels will make a huge difference! A link with ways to help here. My “chip-in” link is here. Thank you so much!
Tamara Rubin
#LeadSafeMama
Are there thoughts to a lawsuit for false marketing? I own several of these pans. Have you attempted to get any kind of refund for any pans that you do have based on this?
I don’t own any of these pans. I think there is basis for a class-action based on false advertising here. He emphatically (all over his website) says these are metals-free when they are not. The fact that they are non-leaching is completely separate from whether or not they are metals-free and he really needs to change his public statements and marketing language as they are misleading.
I want to do something about this! I have a wellness focused podcast and have even recommended this to our listeners. As a user of their products I’m super disappointed. You have my email – if you’re interested in joining forces to push for a change here, let’s talk!
Thank you! Will be in touch for sure!
I’d love an update…did you and/or Tamara pursue this further?
I’m also curious about this. I just bought $650 of cookware due to so many high recommendations from sources I considered reliable. That’s a lot of money to spend to find out I was lied to as a consumer and could now be endangering my family. Is there a way I could assist in pursuing a class-action?
did you pursue a class action lawsuit? I just posted a comment on another thread that I purchased my Xtrema pots & pans Nov 2022 and have just undergone much testing to find out what’s wrong with me. I have VERY HIGH levels of Lead and also Cadmium in my system. My memory is shot, I cannot focus for very long, I’m not sleeping well, and I’m now sick to my stomach over how much $$$ I’ve spent since June trying to sort out what’s wrong with me. I literally just got my results from the Total Tax Burden Test to check for metal toxicity and today I received my protocol to detox from all this. Praying that I’m not permanently in trouble here!!! Please let me know if there’s any way to pursue this. I have been out of work for 10 months and am living off my retirement. I desperately need my health back so I can start producing income again. Thanks!
I have ceramics from Emerson Creek Pottery in Virginia, as they claim their handmade products are lead and cadmium free. I also have stainless steel saucepans from HomiChef who claim their stainless steel to be nickel-free. I love both Emerson Creek and HomiChef — as long as their claims are legit!! I am wondering if you have any knowledge on these two companies? Thank you, and thanks for all the work you do.
Nina
Hi! I just came across this article! I’m shocked ! Over the years I’ve read in multiple places that these are a highly recommended safe product! I’ve been buying and recommending for a few years! What’s the latest news on if this is being addressed?
Thank you!
Thank you so much for testing these… I just found your website today when a friend posted a link. I searched for Xtrema out of curiousity because they are made in China and I didn’t like that, although I bought them anyway because I was convinced they were the most non toxic choice. So, I use this very expensive cookware and have for several years; and I spend MOST of my very limited income buying organic food and products specifically to avoid toxins, especially heavy metals, in attempts to regain my health.
I had wondered where my continuing sources of heavy metals could be coming from and where the cobalt in my medical testing came from.
I’ve never cared for Mercola and he seems to me like like a bandwagon jumper with no independent thought or knowledge; his only expertise being marketing expertise to reframe what he sees elsewhere as his own idea, and then selling those things for ridiculously inflated prices—but this indicates it’s even worse that he’s a dishonest scam artist and money is all he cares about. I didn’t even know until your article he sold these and had I known I never would have bought them.
Thanks for commenting. I was also really surprised about the cobalt levels when I took a moment to look at them, because the owner of the company specifically says he has a concern with cobalt! And these levels are fairly high. I don’t know that any leach test is actively testing for cobalt… that’s something to research.
Tamara I became very ill from xtrema and do not believe this product is safe. The cook surface broke down and leached into the food. I alerted manuf and received a poor explanation. These should not be on the market in my view.
M
Dr. Mercola is not a scam artist. If he was selling these on his website, he believed the manufacturer’s claim, as we all did.
Hi Linda,
Unfortunately Dr. Mercola has continued to sell these products even after learning the pans (which are advertised and sold as “Metals Free”) are positive for high levels of a variety of heavy metals (and other metals too!)
Tamara
Mercola doesn’t sell them. I just checked. Maybe he did in the past and then found out that they weren’t “as advertised”.
It is hard to take this review seriously when you recommend Stainless Steel as a healthy alternative. ALL STAINLESS STEEL COOKWARE LEACHES NICKEL AND CHROMIUM. Proved by multiple NIH reports and also by numerous high profile research institutions in other countries. There are no safe stainless steel pots. They all leach metal.
An obvious oversight from a blog such as this, I guess means you are promoting these brands.
I wouldn’t buy Xtrema simply because it is made in China and it is a massively corrupt environmentally destroyed country (I’ve been there many times). Does anyone else know of a ceramic cookware company not made in China. I can’t find one.
FYI, Borosilicate glass can have lead in it. You need lead free glass…but who to trust? Such is the world these days.
This is not a product review. A review usually shares information about how a product performs in use. It is a post that shares the exact metals makeup of the pan which is contradictory to the statements of the manufacture (who is engaging in false advertising.) I use stainless, cast iron and clear glass in my home. My readers want to know what I use in my home so I share that with them. My focus is only that it be lead-free (what I use in my home) because my children have brain damage and other issues as a result of being poisoned by lead. Stainless from Ikea can be Nickel free, you should check it out. My children have had no reactions to Nickel that I am aware of but I do most of my cooking in glass and vintage cast iron. I have no ceramic cookware personally.
Hello, Tamara. Does Exrema really contains lead and other heavy metals? I just spend $700 on that cookwear, threw away all my other cookware I had and I’m just so disappointed about their falce advertasiment.
Hi Sasha, Yes – it really does. The testing I do is scientific and replicable. I have tested many many many pieces from this brand and not found a single one to be lead-free as they claim it to be.
Tamara
Hi Tamara, Do you and anyone here know if the Visions cookware is non-toxic?.
You can check out “Atgrills” ceramic cookware.
Our main source of lead poisoning was these pans ☹️. Be wary. Once we removed the pans our lead levels dropped.
THANK YOU for testing this. I was so close to making a purchase. Tamara what brand of stainless steel and glass do you use to cook with? I am on the hunt for cookware, we currently have teflon and I want it out of my house asap. We have a glass top stove and my husband will not use cast iron because of that.
Just found your website. What a wealth of information. Thank you. What about Emil Henry flame top cookware that are now being sold? They say it’s lead, cadmium and nickel free but I have read your articles about the mixing bowls containing lead even though it says lead free. Are the flame top pieces using different glazing methods or glazes?
I haven’t yet tested those.
– Tamara
Hi Tamara! Could you help me interpret this reading: interior of pot: Lead (Pb): 74 +/- 15 ppm. What do the two numbers and signs mean? Thanks a bunch! Also, I would love to send you my broken Xtrema pot for testing if you wouldn’t mind.
As of June 25,2019, I contacted the FDA to verify the “FDA lab certification” posted on Xtrema’s website. The representative was very informative and told me the FDA does NOT certify labs and the document on Xtrema’s website was made by Ceramcor, LLC; NOT the FDA. Ceramcor, LLC took information from FDA’s “general information” and cut and pasted to create their own document. The FDA also told me that Ceramcor, LLC is NOT currently on the FDA’s list for company’s allowed to import product into the USA. Their import qualification expired on June 15, 2018. This means they shouldn’t legally be importing ANY product from China at this time (or any time after June 15, 2018).
I am PREGNANT and have been using their pot for my entire pregnancy. I am angry.
Class action lawsuit in the works? I purchased and on board with it.
Have you tested Caraway pans? I’m at a loss of what to do since cooking acidic foods in stainless steel and cast iron can leach heavy metals and you can’t sear foods in a glass pan
Hi Christianne,
I am not familiar with Caraway pans. I use clear glass, stainless and cast iron in my home (and try not to rely on any one pan for meals – so we are always mixing things up.)
Thanks for commenting.
Tamara
Caraway is a huge player now in the ceramic world. Definitely would be interesting to test as they make similar claims!
Ah – thanks for commenting. I am not familiar with them.
Tamara
Hi Christianne, You say you can’t sear foods in a glass pan. Can you please elaborate on that?.
I’m with you all on this..short story o bought Xtrema and ready to join a lawsuit very disappointed in their false advertisement of Lead free!
Very interesting and insightful discussion (that has spanned multiple years). Thank you Tamara for making these conversations possible and available to everyone. Great work!
Do you have a definitive list of Top Safe Cookware that you would recommend?
Thank you for your tests, time, and authenticity. Just a few questions if you have the time and don’t mind:
Do your tests demonstrate that these metals will leach into foods? I’m not happy to know these metals exist either way, but could it be possible that these metals do not interact with the food? Would you be able to provide tests that demonstrate that the cooking caused leaching?
Your time and work here is unprecedented! Thank you!
Hi John,
Here is my post about the testing methodology I use and what it means/ what it entails: https://tamararubin.com/2016/12/ask-tamara-what-do-you-use-to-test-for-lead/
I do not do leach testing. What I do is costly enough and I am a low income mother of disabled children and can not also afford to do leach testing. My business is growing and had CoViD-19 not hit, we were on track to double our income this year which would have allowed me to expand in to some independent third party leach testing and other lab testing – unfortunately that did not happen this year – but perhaps it will happen next year. My work is funded and supported by my readers… you can read more about that here: https://tamararubin.com/2019/08/tamara-can-i-send-you-one-of-my-dishes-to-test-for-lead/
And here: https://tamararubin.com/2017/01/chip-in/
The simplest way to support this work is to share blog posts of interest with your friends and family on social media and through other channels. The more page views the site has the more income the site will generate and that will help me expand in to leach testing of certain items in the future.
Of interest: Leach testing is not required for the outside of pans, nor for many vessels that families use for food but are considered to be decorative items at the time of sale. Leach testing was also not done for most vintage and antique items. You might find this post a helpful explanation of my work as well: https://tamararubin.com/topics/does-vintage-and-new-functional-pottery-and-dishware-have-unsafe-levels-of-lead/
Tamara
My goodness. I simply happened to be reading an article that stated a source of lead is ceramics. That piqued my interest as I have applauded XTREMA products, thinking, “Finally, a company that figured this out.” This is very disturbing information here, but thank you for posting it. So, I simply googled, “Are XTREMA products lead free and came to your website.
Da__ it! I have invested over $1,000 on their products and also have given them as gifts to a very special friend of mine to protect her. Their advertisements seem honest and compelling and I gave them a superior write-up. I want to return all my products now and do not want to eat the spaghetti sauce and sushi rice I have sitting in two of the pots right now.
I do buy all glass dishes and use Pyrex whenever I can. I do have a casserole glass dish I can use too.
Do you know of anything that is safe. I do not think there can be glass pots correct? It seems like they wood crack over the intense heat and uneven distribution of heat.
Thank you,
Patrick
Hi Patrick! Sorry to be the messenger on this huge disappointment. I also saw (this past year) that they were making red lids and the red lids that I tested were very high in Cadmium (to create the red color) and it seems that they have quietly removed those from the website as well. Of particular interest is my original post on this brand and the comments by the owner: https://tamararubin.com/2017/06/mercola_pan/
I use a mixture of clear glass, undecorated cast iron and undecorated high quality stainless steel in my home.
There are test results for lots of different brands here on the site – and here is a video that shows how to best navigate the site:
https://tamararubin.com/2020/12/how-to-use-the-lead-safe-mama-website-video/
Let me know if you have additional questions.
Tamara
Is visions glass cookware safe? Thanks
Please read this: https://tamararubin.com/2018/09/asktamara-do-you-recommend-corning-visionware/
And watch this video: https://tamararubin.com/2020/12/how-to-use-the-lead-safe-mama-website-video/
Thx
THANK YOU!! I had two pans in my shopping cart, but did one last google search to see if there are any claims of heavy metal testing. You saved me about $400. Titanium cookware it is…
Could you please tell us which glass and stainless steel cookware brands you use? I’m assuming you haven’t answered any of the questions about this above because you don’t want your suggestions to be taken as gospel. That said, you do seem remarkably well informed, and I think we’re all curious about what’s available that meets your standards. Thanks!
Thank you Molly! I have all of my guidelines spelled out in this post – it is long but comprehensive (link):
https://tamararubin.com/2021/01/i-want-to-buy-some-nontoxic-cookware-which-pots-pans-are-the-safest-for-cooking-which-pots-pans-are-the-least-toxic/
Towards the end of that post I also have a list of products I have purchased for my family.
I do hate recommending products but I get so many requests I also started this website: http://www.ShopLeadSafeMama.com
I created this a while ago but have not updated it recently – although it might be helpful too:
https://tamararubin.com/2018/07/lead-safe-mamas-amazon-store/
Tamara
Tamara
How can I believe you based on typed results? I want actual proof..
Hi Jorge,
Here’s the post about the testing methodology used on this site:
https://tamararubin.com/2016/12/ask-tamara-what-do-you-use-to-test-for-lead/
I was the parent advocate responsible for finding Lead in fidget spinners in 2017:
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/fidget-spinners-high-levels-of-lead-consumer-advocacy-organization-report/
This is how I present all my results (would you prefer them hand-written vs. typed? lol.)
You don’t have to believe me if you don’t want to… but if my findings were untrue the company would have likely gone after me with their attorneys and asked me to remove these findings from this website. They threatened to do this but did not, because my results are science-based, replicable and accurate – using accepted scientific technology for testing consumer goods.
Tamara
Hello.
I just recently purchased these, then I came across this article. Its very upsetting because they are very expensive and are advertised as non toxic. I am trying to diminish my exposure to toxic materials as i already am suffering from cancer but managing it. I am still able to return them but I will be charged shipping, which is not fair as they are advertising false statements.
I am at a loss in finding non toxic cookware. I usually see green pan as safe?
Would you recommend that one?
In the past 5 years half a dozen cookware manufactures have popped up. Just basically drop shippers. All claiming how great they are and how they are cutting out the “middleman”. They pay “mommy bloggers” and Marketing Companies to leverage Social Media. They buy quasi celebrities to endorse their products. None of these people are material experts… they are just seizing an opportunity. And that’s all good I suppose. But it’s not hard to weed them out. First they almost never publish and actual physical address and when they do it’s just a UPS Store. And they seldom use a real credit card processor… sure Paypal and Amazon are real… but not as real as actual VISA MASTERCARD DISCOVER AE processors. In any case… it’s so hard to get real honest reviews because everything is attached to some performance affiliate metric. Pay to Play. This is why I pay extra to just buy Name Brand. If you have the ability you should look at the SHI$SHOW Generic Pharmaceuticals have become. Who is testing them to see that the active ingredient is even in them and what kind of binders and fillers are used? Basically nobody. Profit Before People. Thanks for an excellent write up. I trust NO ONE in the Industry of Cookware. So I try just to dig into products that are using metals that have been around a very long time and assume all coatings are toxic.
Hello, do you have a leach testing result for the extrema saucepan?
No – I don’t do leach testing in my work, just total content testing for metals using XRF technology. The big issue with this brand is that they sell the product as “pure ceramic” which is not a thing, and they had specifically advertised the products (historically, until recently) as being “metals free” – which is just simply not true. As a result many people purchased these products under false assumptions based on intentionally misleading / greenwashing statements made by the manufacturer. While they have since changed the language in many of their public statements and advertising material – they made no effort to offer refunds to those who purchase the products under false assumptions based on the company’s historically false advertising promises.
Tamara
Thank you, Tamara. Acidic solutions can test whether or not metals leach into food.
If there are consumers that have suffered metals poisoning from food cooked in Xtrema saucepan, they can report this product. https://www.cpsc.gov/
The manufacturer clams that their products meet Prop 65 standards.
Prop 65 is a labeling standard – that an item must be labeled if it has toxicants.
T