Ground cinnamon sold in U.S. discount stores is contaminated with high levels of lead and should be discarded. The U.S.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said cinnamon sold by stores including the Dollar Tree and Family Dollar contains lead at levels that could be unsafe for people, particularly children, with prolonged exposure to the spice. The agency urged suppliers to recall the products voluntarily.
Cinnamon products included in the agency’s safety alert include the La Fiesta brand sold by La Superior and SuperMercados; Marcum brand sold by Save A Lot stores; MK brands sold by SF Supermarket; Swad brand sold by Patel Brothers; El Chilar brand sold by La Joya Morelense; and Supreme Tradition brand sold by Dollar Tree and Family Dollar stores.
They issued a recall recommendation, which basically means all these products will be thrown away by distributors. Looks like the lead contamination was pretty miniscule compared to that applesauce recall from last year, I'm glad the FDA is staying on top of this and taking any amount of lead contamination seriously.
I just responded to another person who basically asked the same thing. They basically ask nicely first, and then they don't ask nicely the second time. As to why this way, legal reasons.