CocoaVia 500mg Cocoa Flavanols Capsules (60 capsules)

1. Ingredients 25% of the rating 5 of 5

   Two ingredients, a cocoa extract standardized to 500 mg of flavanols and a hypromellose capsule, at the dose the main trial used; nothing added.

2. Independent testing 35% of the rating 3 of 5

   Clean Label Project (Purity Award) and NSF Contents Certified list this capsule, both paid for by the maker, and ConsumerLab’s cocoa review includes CocoaVia products, but no figure for this capsule is public.

3. Evidence 15% of the rating 3 of 5

   COSMOS is large and uses this dose, but total cardiovascular events fell 10% with a confidence interval that crossed 1; heart deaths fell 27%.

4. Trust 10% of the rating 3 of 5

   No Prop 65 notice or recall names CocoaVia, but Mars supplied and helped fund COSMOS, and the page’s 39% claim uses only those who took the pills.

5. Value 15% of the rating 2 of 5

   About $1.63 a day, nearly twice the next dearest product here (Thorne magnesium, about $0.87), though cocoa flavanols at a measured dose have no cheap equivalent.

The rating, 3.4 of 5, is the weighted average of these scores. See how we rank vitamins & minerals and our standard.

• Amazon (opens in a new tab) approx. $49. The 60-capsule, 30-day pack, sold by Mars Edge (the maker) and shipped by Amazon. Its barcode, 850487002789, is the one on Clean Label Project’s certificate. A second listing, B07WV68RQL, is also sold by Mars Edge at $48.99 but carries an older barcode (850487002482). Seen 2026-11-03.
• Walmart (opens in a new tab) approx. $49. The 60-capsule pack, sold and shipped by CocoaVia. Its barcode (850487002482) is the older one, not the one on Clean Label Project’s certificate. Seen 2026-11-03.

Prices as we saw them on November 3, 2026. They change often. These links carry no tracking code and earn us nothing.

1. Cocoapro cocoa extract (cocoa bean), 1,130 mg, with 500 mg cocoa flavanols (80 mg epicatechin)
2. Hypromellose (capsule)

• Paid certification Clean Label Project (the maker pays) March 2026

  Certificate SPP0062-2026C-05, issued to Mars Symbioscience on 5 March 2026, lists “500mg Cocoa Flavanol Capsules 30sv” (UPC 850487002789, the barcode on the maker’s 1-month pack and on Amazon’s B09FVFLYTN listing) with the Purity Award. CLP says brands choose to be tested and that it is supported partly by certification fees from brands, and that its lab buys the product off the shelf. The certificate shows a pass, not figures. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)

• Paid certification NSF Contents Certified, NSF/ANSI 173 (the maker pays) November 2026

  NSF’s listing for Mars, Inc. dba Mars Symbioscience names “CocoaVia Cocoa Flavanols 500mg”, capsule, 2 capsules a serving, product ID “All”, made in Broomfield, Colorado. NSF says it tested and certified that the products contain the identity and quantity of dietary ingredients on the label and no unacceptable quantities of unwanted contaminants. It publishes no figures. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)

• Paid certification ConsumerLab cocoa review, where CocoaVia’s products came through ConsumerLab’s Quality Certification Program (the maker pays the testing fee) September 2026

  The review, updated 24 September 2026 for products tested in 2025 and 2026, lists 27 products: 14 dark chocolates, 10 cocoa powders and three CocoaVia supplements (Cardio Health, Flavanols in dark chocolate flavor, and Memory+). It says three cocoa supplements were Approved, with 580 to 878 mg of flavanols a serving, which by our count means all three CocoaVia products passed, but the free summary does not say so and the figures are for members. “Cardio Health” is probably this capsule’s earlier name (SuppCo uses it for this barcode), but we could not confirm that. A July 2022 notice on the same page says ConsumerLab tested and Approved three CocoaVia products through its voluntary program, which carries a testing fee paid by the manufacturer; the Approved Quality seal is on this capsule’s label. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)

• Paid certification SuppCo TESTED program (brands pay to join; SuppCo buys the product itself from the brand’s site) 2026

  SuppCo’s page for UPC 850487002789 lists the product in its TESTED program, which checks key active ingredients for identity and potency against the label, not contaminants, and says it is backed by NSF-certified manufacturing. SuppCo’s FAQ says brands pay to take part and that payment does not buy a pass. The figures are in SuppCo’s app, and the page says batch certificates are not published. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Does cocoa carry cadmium and lead, and is this capsule clean?

Often, in chocolate and powders: ConsumerLab (opens in a new tab) did not approve seven of 14 dark chocolates and two of 10 cocoa powders for cadmium. CocoaVia’s page says ConsumerLab found under 0.007 µg of cadmium a serving in this capsule, a figure we could not see. Clean Label Project’s Purity Award and NSF’s Contents Certified listing both cover contaminants but show only a pass, and the maker pays for each. California’s 60-day notice search (opens in a new tab) finds no notice naming CocoaVia, Mars Symbioscience or Mars Edge. Mars, Incorporated is named in 2026 notices for lead or cadmium in KIND snacks and other foods, not for this product.

Does it prevent heart disease? The page says 39%.

The page says people who reported taking 500 mg a day had a “39% improvement in key heart-health outcomes” against placebo, counting only those who took the supplement. The trial’s main result, in everyone assigned to it, was a 10% drop in total cardiovascular events that was not statistically significant, with heart deaths 27% lower and a per-protocol hazard ratio of 0.85 for total events, a 15% drop the authors say to read with caution (PubMed (opens in a new tab)). We did not find the 39% figure in the abstract or the text of the paper.

Did the maker fund the research behind it?

Partly. The paper says COSMOS had an investigator-initiated grant from Mars Edge, which gave infrastructure support and donated the study pills and packaging, and that Mars Edge staff are named among its contributors. The National Institutes of Health also funded it (paper (opens in a new tab)). That does not make the result wrong, but the product and the trial share a sponsor.

Is it safe, and who should skip it?

The label gives 25 mg of caffeine a serving and says not to use it if pregnant or lactating, to ask a physician if you take any medicine, and not to give it to children. The trial’s authors reported no safety concerns.

Is it worth about $1.63 a day compared with cocoa or chocolate?

ConsumerLab found flavanols from 10 to 676 mg per 5 g of cocoa powder and from 2.4 to 309 mg in dark chocolate, so cheaper products often give far less than 500 mg. The capsule gives a fixed dose, at a price many times that of most supplements here.

• The label is two ingredients: Cocoapro cocoa extract (1,130 mg, giving 500 mg of cocoa flavanols with 80 mg of epicatechin) and a hypromellose capsule. No sweetener, flavor, color or filler.
• The dose matches COSMOS, a randomized trial of 21,442 older adults that gave 500 mg of flavanols a day, including 80 mg of epicatechin, supplied by Mars Edge (PubMed (opens in a new tab)).
• Clean Label Project’s certificate SPP0062-2026C-05 lists this pack by UPC with the Purity Award. CLP says the award screens for heavy metals, pesticides, glyphosate, phthalates and bisphenols and goes to the top third of a studied category.
• NSF’s Contents Certified listing (NSF/ANSI 173) names the 500 mg capsule. NSF says it tested that the products hold what the label says and no unacceptable amounts of contaminants.
• Cocoa takes up cadmium and lead from soil, so outside screening matters: in its 2025 and 2026 tests ConsumerLab did not approve seven of 14 dark chocolates and two of 10 cocoa powders because of cadmium.

• COSMOS missed its main goal: total cardiovascular events were 10% lower, a gap the trial could not tell from chance (hazard ratio 0.90, 95% CI 0.78 to 1.02). Heart deaths were 27% lower, a secondary result.
• No one publishes figures for this product. Clean Label Project and NSF show passes, ConsumerLab’s verdict is for members, and the one cadmium number (under 0.007 µg a serving) is the maker’s quote of ConsumerLab. The maker pays for the first two.
• About $1.63 a day, nearly twice the next dearest product we list in this category and many times the cost of most.
• It carries 25 mg of caffeine a serving. The label says not to use it if pregnant or nursing, and to ask a physician first if you take any medicine.
• The 39% figure on the page comes only from people who reported taking the capsules, not from everyone in the trial.

Third-party tested

Yes

Tested by

Clean Label Project (Purity Award) and NSF Contents Certified, both paid by the maker

1. CocoaVia 500mg Cocoa Flavanols Capsules product page. Maker’s page. Price $48.99 for the 1-month pack, the 39% claim and its footnote, the cadmium quote and the caffeine figure. Seen 2026-11-02. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
2. CocoaVia capsule label (supplement facts). Maker’s page. Two capsules, 30 servings, 1,130 mg extract, 500 mg flavanols, 80 mg epicatechin, hypromellose capsule, 25 mg caffeine, marks and warning. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
3. Clean Label Project certificate SPP0062-2026C-05 (Mars Symbioscience). Certifier or regulator listing. Lists the 500mg Cocoa Flavanol Capsules 30sv, UPC 850487002789, with the Purity Award, 5 March 2026. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
4. Clean Label Project: CocoaVia brand page. Certifier or regulator listing. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
5. Clean Label Project: types of certification. Independent source. What the Purity Award screens for and that it goes to the top third of a studied category. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
6. Clean Label Project FAQ. Independent source. Brands choose to be certified; CLP is supported partly by certification fees from brands; the lab buys products off the shelf. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
7. NSF Contents Certified listing (NSF/ANSI 173): Mars Symbioscience, CocoaVia. Certifier or regulator listing. Lists CocoaVia Cocoa Flavanols 500mg, capsule, 2 capsules; also CocoaVia powders and the 750mg capsule. Opened 2026-11-03. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
8. ConsumerLab: Dark Chocolates, Cocoa Powders and Supplements Review. Test report. Free summary: seven of 14 chocolates and two of 10 powders not approved for cadmium, 27 products listed including three CocoaVia supplements, three cocoa supplements approved, and the July 2022 certification notice. Member-only details. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
9. ConsumerLab: Quality Certification Program. Independent source. Says there is a testing fee paid by the manufacturer and the results belong to the manufacturer. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
10. SuppCo: CocoaVia Cocoa Flavanols Capsules 500 mg. Independent source. Shows TESTED by SuppCo status and the label data for UPC 850487002789. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
11. SuppCo: how the TESTED program works. Independent source. Brands opt in and pay (the FAQ says so); SuppCo buys the product from the brand’s site; identity and potency only. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
12. PubMed: COSMOS cocoa extract and cardiovascular events (PMID 35294962). Certifier or regulator listing. Abstract: 21,442 adults, 3.6 years, hazard ratio 0.90 for total events, 0.73 for cardiovascular death, 0.85 per protocol. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
13. COSMOS paper in PubMed Central (funding and conflicts). Test report. Capsules supplied by Mars Edge; investigator-initiated grant from Mars Edge; NIH grants. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
14. Amazon listing: CocoaVia Cocoa Flavanols 500mg, 60 capsules. Independent source. $48.99, sold by Mars Edge, ships from Amazon, in stock on 2026-11-03. UPC 850487002789. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
15. Walmart listing: CocoaVia Cocoa Flavanols 500mg, 60 capsules. Independent source. $48.99, sold and shipped by CocoaVia, seen 2026-11-03. UPC 850487002482. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
16. California Attorney General Prop 65 60-day notice search: CocoaVia. Certifier or regulator listing. No results on 2026-11-03. Searches for Mars Symbioscience and Mars Edge in quotation marks also found none. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
17. California Attorney General Prop 65 60-day notice search: Mars. Certifier or regulator listing. Notices 2026-04464 and 2026-04461 (cadmium in KIND products) and others name Mars, Incorporated for other foods. None names CocoaVia. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
18. openFDA food enforcement reports for Mars. Certifier or regulator listing. Recalls of other Mars foods (2014, 2016, 2026). Nothing for CocoaVia or Mars Symbioscience in the food or drug databases. Checked 2026-11-03. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
19. FDA warning letters database. Certifier or regulator listing. Searched by company name on 2026-11-03: no letter for CocoaVia, Mars Symbioscience or Mars Edge. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)

• Non-alkalized cocoa powder Far cheaper, but ConsumerLab did not approve two of ten cocoa powders for cadmium, and flavanols ranged from 10 to 676 mg per 5 g. Check a tester’s results before buying.

• Flavanols, Heart Health, and Cognitive Function Article How raw cacao's flavanol compounds support cardiovascular health, sharpen cognition, stabilize blood sugar, and lift mood — with the peer-reviewed evidence behind the claims
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