Cadmium found in most tested Swiss food products, raising cumulative-exposure concerns

Cadmium appeared in 67 of the 90 food products tested, putting a toxic heavy metal into the daily diet conversation for consumers across Switzerland. The French-speaking Swiss Consumer Federation commissioned laboratory tests on breads, pastries, potatoes, pasta, chocolate, cereals and oat flakes, foods selected because they can contain cadmium absorbed from soil.

None of the products breached current safety standards. That finding means the tested items remain legally compliant. It does not settle the question raised by repeated, low level exposure over time. People may eat several foods from the tested categories in the same week, or even the same day, while cadmium remains in the body for years.

Cadmium is classified as toxic and carcinogenic. According to the study information reported by RTS and Swissinfo, long term accumulation can harm the kidneys and weaken bones. The issue therefore rests on total exposure, not on a single product alone.

The results, published on August 27, 2026, do not identify a contaminated brand or a specific Swiss canton. They point to a broader food chain issue involving soil, crops, fertilisers and imported ingredients. Swiss consumers face exposure through ordinary foods, even when each item individually meets the rules.

The highest reading reached 0.36 mg/kg in one chocolate sample, approximately ten times the level found in bread, pasta or potatoes. Chocolate sits at the centre of the findings because cacao trees can absorb cadmium efficiently from the soil.

Delphine Gilliard, a food testing scientist at the consumer federation, told RTS that cacao takes up more cadmium than oats or wheat. The growing region also matters. Gilliard said American soils generally contain more cadmium than African soils, yet chocolate packaging does not always identify the origin of the cacao clearly enough for shoppers to compare products.

Swiss rules allow higher cadmium limits for chocolate than for some other foods. Those limits reflect the plant’s capacity to accumulate the metal and the practical difficulty of eliminating it from cacao completely. The highest result in this survey still remained within the applicable standard.

The test did not establish that all chocolate carries the same risk. Levels varied by sample and growing area, and the source did not publish a brand by brand ranking. Consumers can, however, treat chocolate as a food where origin and portion frequency may affect their overall exposure. Regulators may also face pressure to improve traceability for cacao used in Swiss products.

Potatoes contained 0.042 mg/kg of cadmium, compared with 0.015 mg/kg in toast, according to the laboratory analysis. The difference illustrates how the part of a plant that people eat can shape exposure.

Potatoes develop directly in the soil. Wheat also takes up cadmium through its roots, but only a small portion reaches the grain, Gilliard explained. That helps account for the lower reading in toast. Cereals and oat products remain relevant because repeated consumption can add small amounts to a person’s cumulative intake.

Cadmium enters agricultural soils through natural geology and through phosphate fertilisers. The metal occurs naturally in certain rocks, while fertilisers can increase its concentration in farmland. Once present in soil, it can move into crops and then into products made from those crops.

The study found no significant difference between organic and conventional products. Organic farming often avoids phosphate fertilisers, although some phosphate fertilisers are permitted under organic rules. Similar levels may reflect natural soil concentrations, historic inputs or other factors that the small survey could not separate. Two packages of Swiss organic oats recorded the lowest cadmium levels in their category, showing that product results can vary even within one farming system.