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Taza Chocolate Deliciously Dark 70% Stone Ground Organic Dark Chocolate Bar, 2.5 oz

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Taza Chocolate Deliciously Dark 70% Stone Ground Organic Dark Chocolate Bar, 2.5 oz

Organic cacao, cane sugar and cocoa butter, stone ground. Consumer Reports found it low in both metals in 2022 (33 and 74 percent of the limits), but Taza has had Prop 65 notices on other products. 11 g added sugar per half bar.

Best for Readers who want a lower-priced, organic 70% bar with a good independent metals result and who accept some sugar.

Our rating
Good (3.6 of 5)
Price range
Mid-range
Verified marks
USDA Organic, Direct Trade Certified (Taza’s own program), Non-GMO, certified gluten free, kosher pareve, per the maker
Size
2.5 oz (70 g) bar, two servings of half a bar
Made in
Stone ground in Somerville, Massachusetts from Direct Trade Certified cacao; the bar’s page does not name the country of origin.

approx. $7 for a 2.5 oz bar ($6.99); $62.99 for a case of 10

See it on Taza Chocolate’s site → (opens in a new tab)

We are not affiliated with Taza Chocolate. This link goes to the maker’s own page, with no tracking code. How we're funded.

Also sold at Vitacost ($6), iHerb ($6) .

Reader ratings & reviews

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    Reviews are personal experiences, not research, and they never change our quality ratings. Every review is read by our team before it appears.

    How we evaluated it

    How it scores Our rating, metric by metric Good, 3.6 of 5
    1. Ingredients 25% of the rating 4 of 5

      Three organic ingredients and no emulsifier or flavor; at 70% it carries 11 g of added sugar per half bar (35 g).

    2. Lead & cadmium 35% of the rating 3 of 5

      Consumer Reports, which Taza did not pay, found it low in both metals in 2022, but at 74 percent of the cadmium limit it is the closest to the line of the bars we list.

    3. Sourcing 15% of the rating 4 of 5

      USDA organic and Direct Trade Certified by Taza’s own program; the origin country and the prices paid are not on the bar’s page.

    4. Trust 10% of the rating 3 of 5

      Prop 65 notices were filed on its cacao nibs (settled 2018), two very dark bars (2016) and a sea salt and almond bar (2022, no outcome posted); none names this bar and no recall turned up.

    5. Value 15% of the rating 4 of 5

      About $2.80 an ounce at the maker, among the lowest of the bars here.

    The rating, 3.6 of 5, is the weighted average of these scores. See how we rank chocolate and our standard.

    Where to buy Stores and the prices we saw 2 stores

    Prices as we saw them on November 6, 2026. They change often. These links carry no tracking code and earn us nothing.

    What’s in it Every ingredient, in label order 3 ingredients
    1. Organic cacao beans
    2. Organic cane sugar
    3. Organic cocoa butter
    Who tested it What each test found, and who paid for it 1 test
    • Independent Consumer Reports (28 dark chocolate bars; independent accredited lab, ICP-MS; published December 2022) December 2022

      Taza Organic Deliciously Dark Chocolate 70% Cacao was one of five bars with relatively low lead and cadmium. Consumer Reports’ chart gives 33 percent of California’s lead limit (0.5 µg) and 74 percent of its cadmium limit (4.1 µg) supplied by one ounce. CR tested two or three samples from at least two lot codes, bought in April and May 2022, and does not publish the individual lots. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)

    Who paid, and why it matters
    • Independent The tester took no money from the maker for it: a consumer group, a journalist, a university or a regulator.
    • Paid certification An outside lab or certifier tested or listed it, and the maker paid for that.
    • Maker’s own test A lab report or certificate of analysis the maker commissioned and published.

    A certification is a floor, not a verdict: it checks what its program checks and nothing else. We weigh tests by someone with no stake in the result most.

    What people ask Worries raised online and elsewhere, and what we found 5 questions
    Does Taza have Prop 65 notices?
    Yes, on other products, and none names the 70% bar. The California Attorney General’s list (opens in a new tab) shows three. (1) August 2016, cadmium in Taza Organic Roasted Cacao Nibs (2016-00838 (opens in a new tab)); a complaint was filed and the case settled by consent judgment in May 2018, which is a scanned file we could not read. (2) March 2016, As You Sow’s notice on ten chocolate makers, naming Taza’s Wicked Dark 95% and Mexicano Super Dark 85% bars (2016-00256 (opens in a new tab)); the settlements posted under it name other companies and none that we read mentions Taza, so we cannot say how it ended for Taza. (3) February 2022, cadmium, lead and a solvent in the Sea Salt and Almond bar, from a private filer, also naming Amazon (2022-00295 (opens in a new tab)); no complaint, settlement or judgment is posted. Notices are allegations, not findings. They are why trust is a 3.
    Does it contain lead and cadmium?
    Yes, some. Consumer Reports found 33 percent of the California lead limit and 74 percent of the cadmium limit per ounce (the figures are in the chart on Consumer Reports’ page (opens in a new tab); Mamavation (opens in a new tab) repeats them). That is under both limits, but the margin on cadmium is smaller than Mast’s 40 percent.
    Has the recipe changed since the test?
    Possibly. The bar’s list today includes organic cocoa butter. We do not know whether the 2022 bar did, so the test may not describe today’s lots. Taza posts no lot results.
    Is stone-ground chocolate processed with alkali?
    Taza’s list shows none: organic cacao beans, cane sugar and cocoa butter. Dutch processing strips flavanols, as our dark chocolate guide notes.
    How much sugar is in it?
    The nutrition label we read gives 190 calories and 11 g of total and added sugars for half a bar (35 g), which is about 22 g for the whole bar.
    Why we chose it What put it on our list 3 points
    • Consumer Reports named it among the five lowest of 28 dark bars for both metals; 23 of the 28 went over a California limit at one ounce.
    • The list is three organic ingredients, with no lecithin, vanilla flavor or alkali.
    • At about $2.80 an ounce it is the cheapest bar here that has an independent metals result.
    Trade-offs What to weigh before you buy 4 points
    • The 2022 result is for one bar (two or three samples from at least two lots), and Taza has had Prop 65 notices on other products, including one in 2022.
    • Cadmium was 74 percent of the California limit, so keep to an ounce a day.
    • The page names no cacao country and the sugar is 11 g per half bar.
    • May contain traces of tree nuts and sesame, per the maker.
    What to know Details worth knowing first

    Taza stone grinds organic cacao with cane sugar and cocoa butter and nothing else. The bar is 70% cacao and costs about $2.80 an ounce, the lowest price here.

    Consumer Reports tested it in 2022 and found it low in both lead and cadmium, one of five bars of 28. Cadmium was 74 percent of California’s limit for an ounce, so it passes with less room than Mast. Taza has also had Prop 65 notices on other products, the latest in February 2022, and none names this bar.

    That mix is why we score its testing and trust a 3. It is a fair bar at a fair price, best kept to an ounce a day.

    What we checked Each claim, and how sure we are of it 5 checks
    How Taza Chocolate Deliciously Dark 70% Stone Ground Organic Dark Chocolate Bar, 2.5 oz measures up against our chocolate criteria
    What we checked What we found
    Lead and cadmium measured by a lab the maker does not pay Verified Consumer Reports, samples bought April to May 2022, published December 2022: 33 percent of the lead limit and 74 percent of the cadmium limit per ounce, for the 70% bar.
    A short list: cacao, a named sweetener, perhaps cocoa butter or vanilla Verified Organic cacao beans, organic cane sugar, organic cocoa butter.
    70 percent cacao or more, sugar per serving stated Verified 70%; 11 g total and added sugar per half bar (35 g).
    Traceable cacao, organic, how farmers are paid Maker’s claim USDA organic and Direct Trade Certified per the maker; no country or prices stated on the bar’s page.
    No Prop 65 notice or recall Verified Notices on other Taza products in 2016 and 2022; none on this bar; no FDA recall found 2026-11-05.
    What the labels mean
    • Verified We opened an independent record that confirms it: a certifier’s listing, a regulator’s list or a lab report. It is linked under Sources.
    • Maker’s claim The maker says so on its own page or label. We read it but found no independent record.
    • Not verified We looked and could not confirm it, or the maker does not say. Treat it as unknown.
    Sources Where our facts come from 8 sources
    1. Taza: 70% Deliciously Dark. Maker’s page. $6.99, ingredients, certifications. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
    2. Taza: nutrition facts image for Deliciously Dark. Maker’s page. Serving 1/2 bar (35 g), 190 calories, 11 g added sugar. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
    3. Consumer Reports: Lead and Cadmium Could Be in Your Dark Chocolate. Test report. Chart row: Taza Organic Deliciously Dark Chocolate 70% Cacao, 33 percent of the lead limit and 74 percent of the cadmium limit per ounce. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
    4. Consumer Reports: test methodology for heavy metals in chocolate bars (January 2023). Test report. 2 to 3 samples of at least 2 lots per bar, bought April to May 2022; independent accredited lab. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
    5. Mamavation: dark chocolate lead and cadmium. Test report. Repeats CR’s chart: Taza 70% 33 percent lead, 74 percent cadmium. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
    6. California Attorney General: Prop 65 60-day notice search. Certifier or regulator listing. Notices for Taza in 2016 (AG 2016-00256, 2016-00838) and 2022 (AG 2022-00295), searched 2026-11-05. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
    7. iHerb listing. Independent source. $6.02, in stock 2026-11-06. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
    8. Vitacost listing. Independent source. $6.02 on 2026-11-05. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
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