Cinnamomum verum, its scientific name is Cinnamomum zeylanicum. 

This cinnamon comes from Sri Lanka (Ceylon) and it is the only TRUE cinnamon. 

Unfortunately, in the food industry it is often replaced by Cassia Vera. Cassia Vera comes with the typical cinnamon flavour and smell that we are familiar with. Yet, is is not as sweet or as delicate in flavour as the Ceylon cinnamon. 

A few facts:

. both spices are obtained from an evergreen tree's inner bark. Yet, the variety of spices is different. 

. Cassia is from Cinnamomum cassia (grows in East Asia) while Ceylon cinnamon is taken from Cinnamomum verum (grows in Sri Lanka).

. researchers have discovered that Cassia has a huge amount of coumarin in it, which is a compound/toxin that is potentially linked to liver damage based on scientific studies. Some studies show that Cassia cinnamon powder contains about 1 000 times more of this compound than what Ceylon cinnamon has. 

. the 'true' cinnamon is quite hard to find, it is lighter in colour; bark sticks are thinner, tightly coiled and softer. 

. once it it ground/powdered, the 'true' cinnamon is quite hard to recognise from the 'false' one... only if you are allergic :). Sometimes at the beginning, at Steiner & Kovarik' s they used to have these problems to make sure it was the one they had ordered as supplieres themselves were not able to differentiate. One way to solve this problem was to buy bark sticks (as they are easy to identify) instead of powder. And grind them afterwards.

Remember that CINNAMON is spice with many HEALTH BENEFITS:

. helps regulate blood sugar

. promotes cardiovascular health

. improves the blood lipid profiles

. serves as anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial agents

. source of antioxidants 

. has anti-fungal properties

. faster healing of wounds

. less episodes of nerve inflamation and pain

. improvement of gastric ulcers

. if you are on a low-sugar diet, you can use cinnamon as an alternative to sugar as it can sweeten your food naturally while givint it a delectable taste

. some studies conducted on the health benefits of real cinnamon says it might be used as a cancer prevention, preventing of neurodegenerative diseases, curing AIDS; an extract of this spice inhibited two specific features of Alzheimer's disease and dementia etc. 

Ceylon cinnamon (= 'true' or 'real' cinnamon) lost its popularity over the dominant Cassia cinnamon due to its high price and unavailability. It is not exactly the one commonly found at the supermarket's spice section. In most cases, cinnamon products that are not labeled are Cassia, so it is best to check the label if it states Ceylon or Sri Lankan cinnamon. 

Is the type of cinnamon important? Consider yourself... what type of cinnamon you prefer... 

Guess what type of cinnamon uses Steiner & Kovarik by Prague Chocolate? Those who know our products know the answer too ;).