Commission finds fraud and potential safety issues in cinnamon on the EU market

As part of the European Commission efforts to fight fraud in the herbs and spices sector, JRC scientists used four in-house developed innovative screening methods to detect and identify possible fraudulent practices.

They went beyond identifying the substitution of Ceylon cinnamon the most valuable variety, with cassia, a cheaper and less aromatic alternative, and identified other likely types of substitution, investigated compliance with existing European legislation and international standards. The analysis involved 104 cinnamon samples - 44 of which were labelled as Ceylon cinnamon - purchased at retailers in 10 EU countries, and in the UK, Serbia and Sri Lanka.

Over 66 % of the samples analysed failed to meet international quality standards, were non-compliant with EU food safety legislation, suspected of fraud, and/or potentially exceeded the legal coumarin limits. Coumarin is a natural aromatic compound found in cassia and other plants, potentially toxic for liver.

The results of the investigation can help the scientific community and policy makers to set threshold values for the different cinnamon components, and to define when to consider a sample as suspicious. This will allow to undertake a more detailed surveillance and help competent authorities take action.

In 2023, cinnamon was the fifth most imported spice in the EU following ginger, paprika, pepper and turmeric; with cinnamon demand expected to grow over the next years, cinnamon is an attractive target for fraudsters.

There are two main botanical types of cinnamon: Ceylon cinnamon (Cinnamomum verum or Cinnamomum zeylanicum Blume), native to Sri Lanka, and Cassia (Cinnamomum cassia or Cinnamomum aromaticum), native to Myanmar, a cheaper and lower quality alternative with stronger taste, which naturally contains coumarin. Depending on the marketplace, both types may often be labelled simply as "cinnamon" which can lead to confusion.

The JRC conducted a holistic study applying several methods of analysis to detect different types of fraud in the sector. As much as 9% of the samples labelled as Ceylon cinnamon, were totally or partially substituted by Cassia cinnamon.

Other types of fraud, such as substitution of bark by other parts of the cinnamon tree such as roots, leaves, and flowers, were suspected in a high rate of samples. Moreover, around 21 % of the samples failed to meet international standards due to a high total ash content.

The study also showed that 9.6 % of the samples did not comply with the maximum limit of 2 mg kg-1, set for lead by the European food safety legislation and that 31 of the analysed samples were potentially hazardous for children due to a high coumarin content.

The type of irregularities detected in cinnamon, including fraudulent practises, is diverse and cannot be addressed with only one analytical technique, and standardised methods are needed. The high rate of irregular cinnamon samples in the European market indicates that attention should be paid to the situation by all stakeholders in the sector, policy makers, control laboratories, and manufacturers alike.

The study proposes analytical techniques that can be used as screening and confirmatory methods which could be adopted by official control laboratories to detect fraudulent samples with higher accuracy.

Cinnamon and EU legislation

Cinnamon marketed in the EU must comply with several regulations, on:

• general principles and requirements of food law, establishing the European Food Safety Authority and laying down procedures in matters of food safety
• provision of food information to consumers
• maximum levels for certain contaminants in food, setting a maximum level of 2.0 mg lead per kg of cinnamon
• food additives, setting a maximum level of 150 mg of sulphur dioxide-sulphites per kg in cinnamon.

In addition, the regulation on flavourings and certain food ingredients with flavouring properties for use in and on foods sets maximum levels of coumarin ranging from 5 mg kg−1 in desserts to 50 mg kg−1 in traditional and/or seasonal bakery products labelled as containing cinnamon. There isn't a specific provision which applies to coumarin naturally present in cinnamon.

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