As you probably have seen, word is out that Consumer Reports has indicated that a whole bunch of dark chocolates have what they call high levels of lead and cadmium. Most of the chocolates they mention are single source or blended and most are from Latin America.
However, they used California standards, which are about half of what the EU allows (and are getting stricter in 2024).
So I’m not really sweating it but YMMV. But probably the chocolate industry is.
Table 1:
| Composition of the chocolate | Max lead level (in ppm – parts per million) | Max cadmium level (ppm) |
| Up to 65% cocoa content | 0.100 | 0.400 |
| Between 65% and 95% cocoa content | 0.150 | 0.450 |
| More than 95% cocoa content | 0.225 | 0.960 |
By the year 2024, these limits will become even more severe.
Table 1: The EU’s maximum permitted levels of cadmium in cocoa and derived products
Midwest Chick's Place 
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