As the season of autumn invites us to slow down and turn inward, let ceremonial cacao be part of your ritual.

Cacao Laboratory Heavy Metals Report: Spring 2026

At Cacao Laboratory, we offer 100% organically certified cacao, with purity and quality at the heart of everything we do. Every batch undergoes independent third-party testing to ensure product safety and transparency. Our latest analysis, conducted by Eurofins, confirms that our cacao contains cadmium and lead levels well below EU regulatory limits. Now, Cacao Laboratory is also available in Europe, making our cacao and our mission accessible to an even wider community.

How Minerals Enter Cacao

  • Cadmium (Soil-Based): Cadmium is a naturally occurring element found in mineral-rich volcanic soils. Because cacao is a “hyper-accumulator,” it naturally draws these minerals into the bean as it grows
  • Lead (Atmospheric): Lead is generally a post-harvest contaminant due to atmospheric exposure. While we dry our beans on shaded, raised beds to avoid road dust, trace atmospheric lead can still cling to the sticky mucilage of the bean during fermentation.

The Reality of “Zero”: There is no such thing as “zero” lead or cadmium in an earth-grown product, but we are dealing in very small quantities – our result of 0.0409 ppm lead is equivalent to one minute in 47.5 years!

A Note on CA Prop 65

California’s Proposition 65 is an extremely over-cautious standard: its limits are set 1,000 times lower than the level at which no observable effect was found in humans.


Furthermore, Prop 65 guidance is generally scaled for standard chocolate products containing milk and sugar. Because our product is 100% pure cacao solids, it is far more nutrient-dense. Despite this high concentration, our lab results remain well within safe international limits.