Cocoa Powder Product Comparison Chart
Published: October 11, 2025
The image on this page shows a comparative chart of toxicant levels found in the five different cocoa or cacao powder products we have tested and reported on to date. Below, you’ll find links to the articles containing lab reports for each of the products noted in the chart. The products in this chart are arranged in ascending order based on their Cadmium levels. Cadmium is a known carcinogen, with exposure confirmed as being causally linked to cancer.
- While no level of Cadmium is safe for consumption (there is not a minimum acceptable level of exposure for Cadmium, as it is not an essential trace nutrient in any way, shape, or form), the medical and scientific community advised (in 2021) that products consumed by children should not test positive for more than 4 parts per billion (4 ppb) Cadmium.
- Given the recommended “Action Level” of 5 ppb (at which Cadmium in foods is considered unsafe for children), even when the Cadmium level in these cocoa products is diluted by mixing the powder with other likely Cadmium-free ingredients (like milk, butter, eggs, sugar, etc.) during cooking or baking, the Cadmium level of the finished product will still likely be higher than that recommended 5 ppb Action Level. Therefore, none of these products should be considered safe for consumption by young children or pregnant women.
- Navitas Unsweetened Organic Cacao Powder
- Blueprint by Brian Johnson Cocoa Powder — Not Organic
- 365 Whole Foods Market Organic Cocoa Powder
- Now Real Food Organic Raw Cocoa Powder (not yet published/ report pending)
- Holy Kakow Organic Cacao Powder
To see more chocolate products (and candies) we have tested, please scroll down to the grid at the bottom of the page. Each image in the grid links to an article with the lab report for the product pictured.
Section #2) Some Additional Related Information
- Here’s our overview article about the concern for heavy metal contamination of chocolate and chocolate products.
- This link features a list of all the Lab-Tested Safer Choices identified through the Lead Safe Mama, LLC Community Collaborative Laboratory Testing Initiative to date.
- This link is our laboratory testing landing page, which links to all our published lab reports (organized by category).
- This is a link to our “Chocolate Candies” category of articles and lab reports on the site.
- This is a white chocolate product we tested (actual white chocolate, not the fake stuff) — that tested clean: https://amzn.to/42YGqe3
- This link is our “Candy Testing” Category, which features lab reports for all types of candy — not just chocolate.
Amazon links are affiliate links. If you purchase something after clicking on a Lead Safe Mama, LLC Amazon Affiliate Link, Lead Safe Mama, LLC may receive a percentage of what you spend at no extra cost to you.
Section #3) More Chocolate & Candy Products We have Tested (each image below links to an article with the lab report for the product pictured)
Section #4) Chocolate-Flavored Products We have Tested (Not Candy)
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Have you ever tested Hershey’s Cocoa, which is likely one of the most widely used in the U.S.? How about Jello chocolate pudding: the cooked version, and/or instant version? I’ll bet that they are widely used too.
Here are all the products we have tested and published reports on so far. This is a good page to bookmark and check back on periodically for updates.
https://tamararubin.com/lab-reports/
Here’s a lab report for Hershey’s Chocolate Bar:
https://tamararubin.com/2024/10/hershey-bar/
Here’s another for Hershey’s Kisses:
https://tamararubin.com/2025/01/hersheys-milk-chocolate-kisses/
I read earlier about Navitas. Thinking then, that’s bad! Now?!
Sometimes we have to settle for the lesser of the evils. I haven’t found one better than Navita’s. If you have, please share.
There are no uncontaminated cocoa or chocolate products.
T
Thanks for disclosing all the unhealthy chocolates on the market. I am almost 68 and my brain is sharp for having eaten quality chocolate nearly every day of my life. I’m currently eating organic dark chocolate everyday. Where’s a link for the ones without lead or cadmium???
There are none without Lead or Cadmium. All modern chocolate is contaminated.
T
Generally, organic chocolates have higher amounts of cadmium and lead than “mainstream” chocolate bars and powders, according to ConsumerLab. “Quality chocolate” does not mean it doesn’t contain heavy metals. See consumerlab.com for reviews and test results. You need to subscribe in order to view reports, but that’s because they are a lab and they actually test these products and that costs money.
One also has to consider that cacao sources are probably constantly changing due to fluctuations in market prices and availability of the raw materials, so a bar that is low in cadmium in one test may not be so in another a later test. The heavy metals are in the soil naturally and taken up by the cacao trees, so the amount depends on where the plants are growing. Apparently most of the cacao we consume as chocolate is grown in South America where contamination is high, compared with African-grown and Asian-grown cacao. The presence of cadmium in soil results from volcanic activity, fires and weathering of rocks. It’s “natural” but so is arsenic!
Thanks for these tests! I use Premium Cacao Nibs from santa barbara. Its states They are tested for low levels of lead, cadmium, arsenic, mercury before sale. I wonder how true this is tho.
https://www.santabarbarachocolate.com/cacao-nibs-cocoa-nibs/
Seeing it all together is mindblowing. Really sad. I’ve eaten so much chocolate since childhood and passed that on to my kids. We have stopped consuming chocolate but I cant control what they eat outside the house. My inlaws for example, do not care. School. Etc. How did you deal with this with the boys?
My kids are pretty savvy. Charlie (17) might grab some chocolate pudding or piece of chocolate cake (which should have lower toxicant levels than chocolate candy) – so if we want a chocolate fix we look for something that is not an actual chocolate bar. We also love white chocolate (the real stuff, not the fake stuff!) We’re losing a taste for the things we have stopped eating. Potato chips are really gross tasting if you haven’t had them for a year!
T
Hello,
Thank you for the research you do and knowledge you provide. Are there cocoa powders with low levels of contaminants?
No.
There are no safe cocoa products. Modern cocoa is all contaminated and should only rarely be consumed – if at all.
T
Hello, Tamara, I am the mother of a teenage girl who absolutely loves iced chocolate. After literally turning the world upside down, I found that MOUNTAIN ROSE HERBS cocoa powder is the lowest in metals among the powders. But even with it, I feel bad when I make her the chocolate. And I order it for tens of dollars because we don’t have it here in Israel. It’s really a war of attrition, and you probably know teenagers… What should I do? Let her drink the drink I make from the cocoa every day.And feel like I’m gossiping about her? Give her the trashy woman they sell in all the cafes with the milk and crazy amounts of sugar? There’s no way she’ll give it up, I’ve tried it, it really doesn’t help, it only leads to fights and frustration… I’m desperate.HELP///
What are the levels they say their cocoa has? Did they share a lab report with you?
T
not with me.they wher in the consumer lab test resulted .you dont know them???
I would love it if you did a test on Good and Gather cocoa from Target. Consumer Labs says it’s low in everything including price.
Please do join us on Patreon with a small monthly contribution so we can help cover the cost of testing and reporting on that product. Thank you.
T