FDA warns six ground cinnamon brands have high levels of lead
Mar 6, 2024, 4:14 PM
The FDA said expanded testing has identified several brands of ground cinnamon with elevated levels of lead. (Liudmila Chernetska/iStockphoto/Getty Images via CNN)
(Liudmila Chernetska/iStockphoto/Getty Images via CNN)
WASHINGTON (CNN) — The US Food and Drug Administration has expanded its investigation into tainted cinnamon products, and its experts now say that the lead contamination extends beyond the cinnamon applesauce pouches recalled in October.
The agency said Wednesday that expanded testing has identified several brands of ground cinnamon with elevated levels of lead.
The FDA says that more than 460 confirmed and suspected cases of lead poisoning have been tied to applesauce pouches sold under the WanaBana, Schnucks or Weis brands that were flavored with cinnamon imported from Ecuador. Those cases, many of them in children, are still under investigation.
The agency said Wednesday that it sent a letter to all US cinnamon manufacturers, processors, distributors, and facility operators to remind them of their obligation to prevent contamination.
It has also expanded its testing to brands of ground cinnamon from discount retailers and analyzed those samples for lead and chromium. Based on its survey, the FDA is recommending recalls of ground cinnamon from six distributors.
Although the levels of lead found in ground cinnamon products are far lower than what was found in some cinnamon applesauce pouches, the agency is advising consumers that prolonged exposure to these products may be unsafe.
The FDA has advised manufacturers to recall these products and says consumers who have them at home should stop using them and throw them away.
The brands are:
- La Fiesta, lot 25033, sold at La Superior SuperMercados
- Marcum, best by 10/16/25 and 4/06/25, sold at Save A Lot
- MTCI, sold at SF Supermarket
- Swad, lot KX21223, sold at Patel Brothers
- Supreme Tradition, best buy dates from 4/25 through 9/25, sold at Dollar Tree and Family Dollar
- El Chillar, F275EX1026 and D300EX1024, sold at La Joya Morelense in Baltimore, Maryland
The concentrations of lead in the ground cinnamon products ranged from 2 to 3.4 parts per million, according to the FDA; the concentrations of lead found in the cinnamon applesauce pouches were thousands of times higher: between about 2,300 parts per million and about 5,100 parts per million.
Most people have no obvious immediate symptoms of lead exposure. The FDA says that someone who may have been exposed to elevated levels of lead should talk to a health care provider.
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