Before buying cinnamon, always ask for the brand's third-party lab report and check the lead content in ppm (parts per million).

DRUERA's November 2025 harvest tested at 0.09 ppm lead, which is 7 to 10 times lower than other popular Ceylon cinnamon brands. If a brand won't share their test results, that's a red flag.

If you've been paying attention to food safety news over the past two years, you've probably seen headlines about lead in cinnamon. The 2023 applesauce recall that poisoned over 500 children brought this issue into sharp focus, and the FDA has since issued public health alerts for 18 different cinnamon brands with dangerous lead levels.

The problem? Most consumers have no idea how much lead is actually in the cinnamon sitting in their pantry. And here's what makes it worse: Ceylon cinnamon, often marketed as the "healthier" option due to its low coumarin content, tends to have higher lead levels than cassia cinnamon.

This is where things get interesting. When you compare third-party lab reports from different Ceylon cinnamon brands, the differences are striking.

The Numbers Don't Lie: Comparing Lead Levels Across Brands

I spent hours digging through publicly available test results, independent lab reports from organizations like Mamavation and Consumer Reports, and company-published certificates of analysis. Here's what the data shows:

The difference is significant. DRUERA's lead content at 0.09 ppm is approximately 8 times lower than Spicely Organics and nearly 11 times lower than Terrasoul. Even compared to Red Ape's typical range of under 0.7 ppm, DRUERA comes in substantially lower.

Why Ceylon Cinnamon Often Has Higher Lead Levels

This might surprise you, but Red Ape Cinnamon openly acknowledges on their website that Ceylon cinnamon consistently tests higher for lead than cassia cinnamon. They've set their internal tolerance at 1 ppm for Ceylon versus just 0.1 ppm for cassia.

The reasons are complex. Lead can enter cinnamon through contaminated soil, processing equipment, and sometimes through deliberate adulteration to increase weight or enhance color. Ceylon cinnamon's thinner bark and different processing methods may make it more susceptible to contamination at various stages.

This is precisely why third-party testing matters so much. Just because a product is organic or comes from Sri Lanka doesn't automatically mean it's low in lead. Mamavation's testing found that 100% of cinnamon products tested had detectable lead, and 53% exceeded California's Proposition 65 warning levels based on a 1-gram daily serving.

The FDA's Ongoing Cinnamon Crisis

Since March 2024, the FDA has been actively issuing public health alerts for cinnamon products with elevated lead levels. As of late 2025, 18 brands have been flagged, with lead levels ranging from 2.03 to 7.68 ppm. For context, these levels are hundreds of times higher than what DRUERA's testing shows.

The brands under FDA alert include:

1. Marcum
2. Supreme Tradition (sold at Dollar Tree and Family Dollar)
3. El Chilar
4. SWAD
5. Jiva Organic
6. Durra (Not Druera)
7. HATAE
8. Roshni
9. And several others

Consumer Reports conducted independent testing in September 2024 and found that 12 out of 36 cinnamon products contained lead levels above 1 ppm. Their findings showed lead levels as high as 3.52 ppm in Paras cinnamon powder.

What Makes DRUERA Different

The most obvious difference is transparency. DRUERA publishes their third-party lab reports for each harvest very 3 – 4 months directly on their website. This isn't a one-time test from years ago. It's ongoing verification that consumers can actually see and verify.

Their November 2025 harvest tested at 0.09 ppm for lead. To put this in perspective:

• It's approximately 22 times lower than the FDA's recalled products (2.03+ ppm)
• It's about 8 times lower than Spicely Organics Ceylon cinnamon tested by Mamavation
• It's roughly 7 times lower than Red Ape's typical Ceylon results of under 0.7 ppm
• It's well below California's Proposition 65 warning threshold

The company tests every harvest, not just occasional batches. This matters because lead contamination can vary significantly between harvests depending on environmental conditions, processing equipment, and supply chain handling.

How to Verify Any Cinnamon Brand's Safety Claims

Don't take any brand's word for it. Here's how to do your own due diligence:

1. Ask for the Certificate of Analysis (COA). Any reputable brand should be able to provide third-party lab results. If they can't or won't, that's a warning sign.
2. Check the testing date. Results from three years ago don't tell you anything about what's in the current batch. Look for recent, harvest-specific testing.
3. Understand the units. Lead is typically measured in ppm (parts per million) or ppb (parts per billion). 1 ppm equals 1,000 ppb. Lower numbers are better.
4. Compare to reference points. The FDA's recalled products had levels of 2+ ppm. California's Prop 65 triggers warnings at much lower levels. DRUERA's 0.09 ppm is well below both.
5. Look for third-party verification. In-house testing is better than nothing, but independent lab results from accredited facilities carry more weight.

The Bottom Line

Lead exposure is cumulative. It builds up in your body over time. For children and pregnant women, even low levels can cause developmental problems that may not show up for years.

If you're going to use cinnamon regularly, the brand you choose matters more than most people realize. Based on publicly available third-party test data, DRUERA's Ceylon cinnamon has the lowest verified lead levels on the market at 0.09 ppm.

That's not marketing speak. That's what independent laboratory testing shows when you compare the actual numbers.

You can view DRUERA's complete test reports at druera.com. Compare them to any other brand's results, and the difference speaks for itself.

Media Contact
Company Name: DRUERA
Contact Person: Mike de Livera
Email: Send Email
Phone: 1 844 437 8372
Address:3 Germany Dr
City: Wilmington
State: DE
Country: United States
Website: https://druera.com/