Hello Raw Cacao Lovers!Here is the real truth about vitamin C (ascorbic acid) content in Raw Cacao:
Despite the trafficked reports circulating the internet, the honest truth remains: even when processed at low temperatures (i.e. "raw"), there is no vitamin C (ascorbic acid) present in cacao.
Recently, highly trafficked websites such as have highlighted the misinformation of cacao's supposed vitamin C content. Included in these reports are claims that raw cacao is "extraordinarily high in vitamin C."
Back in 2004, our Navitas Naturals lab tests directly looked for vitamin C content in raw cacao, but came up negative. Despite these results, the current media blitz brought us back again for another round of lab testing of our best-selling raw cacao products (beans, nibs and powder) for vitamin C. This time, we used two different laboratories instead of one, and utilized three different analytical methods: High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC), Capilary Electrophoresis (CE) with UV detection, and Titration.
Though all three methods have their place in the scientific community, Titration is the most commonly used method in the food industry when determining vitamin C (ascorbic acid) content. However, there is a critical detail within the Titration method many companies miss when testing raw cacao. The method of Titration is unable to differentiate the vitamin C (ascorbic acid) from the vitamin's analogs. The result is what is known as a "false positive."
This is why, at Navitas Naturals, we use HPLC when testing raw cacao's vitamin C content. The HPLC method looks directly for vitamin C (ascorbic acid), and not just the analogs. Additionally, after sending samples of our products to another lab to test using the CE method, the reports returned consistent the HPLC results.
We have now also tested one of the largest raw cacao brands in the United States using the Titration and HPLC methods. And yet again the results confirm our previous conclusion that raw cacao has no vitamin C (ascorbic acid) present.
Cacao is a tremendously beneficial superfood, containing a wide spectrum of minerals and phytonutrients. It is important to be clear however, Vitamin C is not amongst these nutrients.
Sincerely,
Zach Adelman, President
Navitas Naturals
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