Hershey's Cookies 'n' Creme
At a glance
Summary
Hershey's Cookies 'n' Creme scores 17/100. Third-party 2025 testing detected 280 ppb arsenic. The white-coating uses a blend of palm, shea, sunflower, and safflower oils; alkali-processed cocoa (in the cookie) can concentrate lead and cadmium versus natural cocoa. PGPR is an industrial emulsifier (polyglycerol polyricinoleate) and vanillin is artificial. Owned by The Hershey Company.
Contaminants 1
Source: Independent third-party laboratory testing
Arsenic 280 ppb High
Detected at a high level — at or above health-based exposure limits. Regular exposure at this level is a genuine health concern. No safe level of arsenic exposure exists; chronic exposure is linked to increased cancer risk (lung, skin, kidney, bladder), cardiovascular disease, and neurodevelopmental harm in children.
Independent third-party testing detected arsenic at 280 parts per billion — a notable contamination level.
Key ingredients 11
Vegetable OilVery Bad
Contains: Palm, Shea, Sunflower, Safflower. Industrial oil blend. Palm oil linked to deforestation; high saturated fat profile.
See more about Vegetable Oil →PGPR (Polyglycerol Polyricinoleate)Very Bad
Synthetic emulsifier derived from castor oil and polyglycerol. Used to reduce cocoa butter requirements in cheap chocolate.
See more about PGPR (Polyglycerol Polyricinoleate) →Vanillin (Artificial)Very Bad
Synthetic vanilla flavoring, typically petroleum- or wood-pulp-derived.
See more about Vanillin (Artificial) →SugarBad
First ingredient — refined sucrose.
See more about Sugar →Chocolate CookieBad
Sources: Sugar, Wheat Flour, Palm or Canola Oil, Alkali-Processed Cocoa, Baking Soda, Salt, Soy Lecithin, Natural & Artificial Flavor. Sub-formulation with its own palm/canola oil, alkali cocoa (concentrates heavy metals), and artificial flavor.
See more about Chocolate Cookie →Soy LecithinBad
Industrial emulsifier, typically GMO soy.
See more about Soy Lecithin →Nonfat MilkNeutral
Dairy powder.
See more about Nonfat Milk →LactoseNeutral
Milk sugar.
See more about Lactose →SaltNeutral
Sodium.
See more about Salt →Cocoa ButterGood
Natural traditional fat pressed from cacao.
See more about Cocoa Butter →MilkGood
Beneficial ingredient — whole-food or functional value in this product class.
See more about Milk →Processing
Ultra-Processed Foods
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