How many samples do you need?

Usually three to five sealed retail units per SKU. That covers the analysis plus a retained sample in case a result needs confirmation.

How long does a heavy metals panel take?

Two to four weeks from sample receipt. We confirm the timeline in the quote.

Do I need to retest every batch?

Not always. Many brands test every batch of high-risk ingredients such as botanicals or algae, and test periodically for lower-risk formats. Your retailer's specification often decides this.

Heavy metals testing for supplements

Updated 16/09/2026

Lead, cadmium, mercury and arsenic are the parameters most likely to end a retail listing. They come in through the raw material, not the process, so the only way to know your level is to measure it.

Key points

The standard panel is lead, cadmium, mercury and inorganic arsenic.
ICP-MS is the method to ask for: low detection limits, all four elements in one run.
Botanicals, algae, cocoa, rice and marine ingredients carry the highest risk.
Test the finished product, because blending changes the concentration.

Which elements matter

For food supplements in the EU, four elements do most of the work: lead, cadmium, mercury and arsenic. Regulation (EU) 2023/915 sets maximum levels for food supplements, with stricter values for products consisting of or containing dried seaweed or botanicals.

Arsenic is worth splitting out. Total arsenic includes largely harmless organic forms, so for rice and marine ingredients the meaningful number is inorganic arsenic.

The method

Accredited labs run these elements by ICP-MS after microwave digestion. It reaches detection limits well below the legal limits and covers all four elements in one analysis, which is why it is the default rather than older single-element methods.

Ask for the reporting limit in writing. If the lab reports down to 0.05 mg/kg and your limit is 0.10 mg/kg you have real headroom. If the two numbers are close, the result cannot be used to demonstrate compliance.

Where the risk sits

Heavy metals accumulate in plants from soil and water, so risk follows the ingredient rather than the manufacturer.

Botanical extracts and whole herb powders, especially root material
Algae such as spirulina and chlorella, and marine oils
Cocoa, rice protein and rice-based fillers
Mineral premixes and clay-derived ingredients

How to run it

Send three to five retail units of the finished batch. Testing the raw material tells you about that lot only, and blending, encapsulation and excipients all shift the final concentration. A finished-product result is also the only one a retailer can match to a product on the shelf.

Questions

How many samples do you need?: Usually three to five sealed retail units per SKU. That covers the analysis plus a retained sample in case a result needs confirmation.
How long does a heavy metals panel take?: Two to four weeks from sample receipt. We confirm the timeline in the quote.
Do I need to retest every batch?: Not always. Many brands test every batch of high-risk ingredients such as botanicals or algae, and test periodically for lower-risk formats. Your retailer's specification often decides this.