Coumarin is a hepatotoxic natural compound found in different Cinnamomum species such as Cinnamomum
cassia, Cinnamomum loureiroi, and Cinnamomum burmannii; all commonly referred to as cassia.
Cassia contains high amounts of coumarin in contrast to the more expensive and less used Cinnamomum
verum, referred to as true cinnamon. Today, many commercially available food products are spiced with
cassia and consequently contain coumarin. The content of coumarin in specific food categories is
regulated in the European Regulation (EC) No 1334/2008. In this study, 74 food samples labeled with
cinnamon were analyzed with a validated UPLC-PDA method. The analyzed content of coumarin was
compared to the EU limits. The comparison showed that fine bakery ware exceeded the EU limit for
coumarin in almost 50% of the cases. One sample exceeded the EU limit for coumarin with more than a
factor of three. A possible explanation for this exceedance is that manufacturers of food with cinnamon
lack information about the regulatory EU limits for coumarin and how to comply with the EU regulation.
As an addendum, we therefore propose a practical guide to the food industry and the national food
administrations. The guide describes the theoretical content of cassia that can be added to food products
without exceeding the EU limits for coumarin in 99% of lots produced.
Coumarin is a hepatotoxic natural compound found in different Cinnamomum species such as Cinnamomumcassia, Cinnamomum loureiroi, and Cinnamomum burmannii; all commonly referred to as cassia.Cassia contains high amounts of coumarin in contrast to the more expensive and less used Cinnamomumverum, referred to as true cinnamon. Today, many commercially available food products are spiced withcassia and consequently contain coumarin. The content of coumarin in specific food categories isregulated in the European Regulation (EC) No 1334/2008. In this study, 74 food samples labeled withcinnamon were analyzed with a validated UPLC-PDA method. The analyzed content of coumarin wascompared to the EU limits. The comparison showed that fine bakery ware exceeded the EU limit forcoumarin in almost 50% of the cases. One sample exceeded the EU limit for coumarin with more than afactor of three. A possible explanation for this exceedance is that manufacturers of food with cinnamonlack information about the regulatory EU limits for coumarin and how to comply with the EU regulation.As an addendum, we therefore propose a practical guide to the food industry and the national foodadministrations. The guide describes the theoretical content of cassia that can be added to food productswithout exceeding the EU limits for coumarin in 99% of lots produced.
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