Stepan Company is the only company authorized by DEA to import Coca Leaves
Coca-Cola includes as an ingredient a coca leaf extract prepared by a Stepan Company plant in Maywood, New Jersey.[2] The facility, which had been known as the Maywood Chemical Works, was purchased by Stepan in 1959.[3] The plant is the only commercial entity in the USA authorized by the Drug Enforcement Administration to import coca leaves, which come primarily from Peru. Approximately 100 metric tons of dried coca leaf are imported each year. The cocaine-free leaves are sold to The Coca Cola Company, while the cocaine is sold to Mallinckrodt, a pharmaceutical firm, for medicinal purposes.[4] Don't forget to check out our Kickstarter Campaign! If you love Curionic pledge what you can! Even a dollar and a share helps!