G/SPS/GEN/ 1973  
9 November  2021 
(21-8494) Page: 1/2 
Committee on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures  Original:  Spanish  
 
  
EUROPEAN UNION RESTRICTIONS ON EXPORTS OF CHOCOLATE AND COCOA  PRODUCTS  
DUE TO THE APPLICATION OF REGULATION (EU)  NO. 488/2014 OF 12  MAY 2014  
AMENDING COMMISSION REGULATION  (EC) NO.  1881/2006 AS REGARDS  
MAXIMUM LEVELS OF  CADMIUM IN FOODSTUFFS ( PCE NO. 503) 
COMMUNICATION FROM PERU  
The following communication, received on 8 November  2021, is being circulated at the request of 
the delegation of Peru. 
 
_______________  
 
 
1.  Peru would like to present to WTO Members its trade concern with respect to Commission 
Regulation (EU) No. 488/2014 of 1 2 May 2014 amending Regulation (EC) No. 1881/2006 as regards 
maximum levels of cadmium in foodstuffs . In specific te rms, the European Regulation establishes 
maximum levels for cadmium in chocolate and other cocoa products that, in practice, have a negative 
impact on trade in cocoa beans and cocoa powder.  
2.  Peru considers that Commission Regulation (EU) No. 488/2014 violat es Article  2 of the 
SPS Agreement because sanitary measures should only be applied to the extent necessary to 
protect, inter alia, human health and life ; however, document JECFA/91/SC of 5 March  2021 
indicates that the cadmium contribution of cocoa products continues to be minor, even in countries 
where the consumption of such products is high .1 This document presents additional evidence that 
the presence of cadmium in chocolate and cocoa products  does not constitute  a public health concern 
and that  the application of maximum levels of cadmium in chocolate and cocoa products  is of no 
significant benefit in reducing dietary exposure to cadmium.  
3.  It should also be noted that, while document JECFA/91/SC refers to a hypothetical public health 
concern that  could not be ruled out involving European children who only consum e cocoa products 
from Latin America, such a hypothetical situation has not actually occurred . Even if all cocoa bean 
exports from Latin America and the Caribbean were shipped to the Europea n Union, they only 
accounted for an average of 20.8 % of total European market imports in  the period 2016 -2020.2 
4.  In addition, chocolate intake accounts for a tiny fraction of the European population's total food 
basket, and is even lower elsewhere in the w orld. Most cadmium consumed comes from cereals, 
fruits, vegetables, fish and seafood .3 A slight increase in maximum cadmium levels in any of these 
food groups would have a greater impact than could be expected from the maximum levels in any 
kind of chocol ate. Therefore, reducing cadmium intake from food by reducing cadmium in different 
types of chocolates does not significantly contribute to reducing total cadmium intake, including in 
children.  
 
1 The document is available at: https://cdn.who.int/media/docs/default -source/food -
safety/jecfa/summary -and-conclusio ns/jecfa91 -1to12march2021 -summary -and-
conclusions.pdf?sfvrsn=1d79351f_5 . 
2 Information based on data from the International Trade Centre (ITC) Trade Map.  
3 JECFA/91/SC.  G/SPS/GEN/ 1973 
- 2 - 
  5.  The European Union has established maximum cadmium levels in different types of chocolate 
based on a possible maximum tolerable intake (TWI) of 2 ,5 µg/kg body weight per week4, while the 
level used by the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA) is 5 ,8 µg/kg body 
weight per week . Thus, the  level established by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) is less 
than half (43.1 %) of that established by the JECFA, resulting in lower maximum levels in its regional 
regulations . We therefore call on the European Union to share scientific evidence demonstrating that 
European Union citizens are 232 % more sensitive to cadmium than citizens elsewhere in the world.  
6.  Furthermore, Peru remains concerned that maximum cadmium levels in choco late and cocoa 
products  are still being used as a negotiat ion tool against producers, who have seen their incomes 
fall due to maximum levels ranging from 0. 3 to 1.0 ppm for cocoa beans , cocoa cakes, cocoa husks, 
cocoa paste, etc . 
7.  Moreover , the European Reg ulation is being used for all cocoa powder, regardless of the risk that 
it may pose . This situation is made worse by the inaccurate messages sent out by the European 
Union, which indicate that a maximum cadmium level of 0.6 ppm is applicable to all cocoa  powder .5 
8.  Peru has already indicated that almost all cocoa powder imported by the chocolate industry, 
including the European industry , is used as an input for chocolate confectionery ( confectionery with 
minimum cocoa content ), and a smaller  percentage is destined for  final consumption in the form of 
100% cocoa powder. In practice,  however,  it is not possible for  importing companies to make 
separate purchases , i.e. to import "cocoa powder for final consu mption " and "cocoa powder as an 
input" separately.  
9.  In this context, chocolate companies impose a limit of 0.6 ppm for the import of cocoa powder 
regardless of the end use. Considering that cocoa powder is primarily used as an input for chocolate 
confectionery, the 0.6 ppm limit has no technical  basis since, by mixing this product  with other 
components, the level of cadmium in the final product is insignificant and even lower than the 
European standard.  
10.  It should be noted that Peru is the eighth largest producer of cocoa beans in the world. Cocoa  
farming has a decentralizing and inclusive impact in Peru. It represents 16 producing regions, 90,000 
cocoa -producing families, 136,000 hectares of harvested area and 108,000 tonnes of production. 
Moreover, w omen play a significant role in the agricultura l production of cocoa , accounting for 21.3% 
of the total number of producers. Exports in this chain exceeded USD 279 million in 2020. Although 
exports are down 5 % from 2019, an export potential of more than USD 165 million is estimated.  
11.  In light of the abo ve, Peru calls upon the European Union to rescind Commission Regulation 
(EU) No. 488/2014 with respect to chocolate and other cocoa products, since it is inconsistent with 
the WTO SPS Agreement and creates unnecessary barriers to trade.  
__________  
 
4 Recital 3 of Regulation No. 488/2014:  
"(3) In the scientific opinion on cadmium in fo od, the CONTAM Panel concluded that the mean dietary 
exposures to cadmium in European countries are close to or slightly exceeding the TWI of 2,5 μg/kg body 
weight. Certain subgroups of the population may exceed the TWI by about 2 fold. The CONTAM Panel fu rther 
concluded that, although adverse effects on kidney function are unlikely to occur for an individual exposed at 
this level, exposure to cadmium at the population level should be reduced."  
5 European Union fact sheet:  
https://ec.europa.eu/food/system/files/2019 -
03/cs_contaminants_catalogue_cadmium_chocolate_en.pdf .