--- title: Do Stanley Cups Contain Lead? Here's What You Need to Know description: Stanley cups are a viral sensation and have become a must-have staple amongst social media influencers. canonical: https://time.com/6588909/stanley-cups-contain-lead-concerns-response-viral/ author: Anna Gordon article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2024-01-26T14:16:37.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:44:50.310Z og:title: Stanley Responds to Concern Its Viral Cups Contain Lead og:description: Stanley cups are a viral sensation and have become a must-have staple amongst social media influencers. og:url: https://time.com/6588909/stanley-cups-contain-lead-concerns-response-viral/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt12b7aa7b3dd705c0/698a4430cabb1d799de522bc/GettyImages-1950960506-1.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1024 og:image:height: 576 og:image:alt: US-LIFESTYLE-RETAIL-CUP og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Stanley Responds to Concern Its Viral Cups Contain Lead twitter:description: Stanley cups are a viral sensation and have become a must-have staple amongst social media influencers. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt12b7aa7b3dd705c0/698a4430cabb1d799de522bc/GettyImages-1950960506-1.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Stanley Responds to Concern Its Viral Cups Contain Lead > Sponsored content. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=2a08f2c6-7b4d-4f5b-8300-8db06f8276d6&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Microplastics in Bottled Water At Least 10 Times Worse Than Once Thought [Watch (HLS stream): Microplastics in Bottled Water At Least 10 Times Worse Than Once Thought](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/OqOCGC2i.m3u8) (2:00)  _Published 2024-01-09. Bottled water has long been marketed as a safer alternative to what comes out of the tap—if it doesn’t come straight from a mountain spring, it’s at least purified and chemical free. But a new study by scientists at Columbia University and Rutgers University demonstrates that bottled water may be far worse when it comes to microscopic plastic pollutants capable of passing into the bloodstream._ by [Anna Gordon](https://time.com/author/anna-gordon/) ## Anna Gordon Gordon was a reporter for TIME, based in the London bureau. Jan 26, 2024 2:16 PM UTC  Stanley has responded to claims its viral tumblers, seen here on the shelves of a California supermarket on Jan, 24, 2024, contain lead. Stanley has responded to claims its viral tumblers, seen here on the shelves of a California supermarket on Jan, 24, 2024, contain lead. Frederic J. Brown—Getty Images by [Anna Gordon](https://time.com/author/anna-gordon/) ## Anna Gordon Gordon was a reporter for TIME, based in the London bureau. Jan 26, 2024 2:16 PM UTC Stanley Quencher cups are a viral sensation, becoming a must-have staple amongst social media influencers. The reusable 40 oz tumblers are hailed as environmentally-friendly and stylish. According to Stanley’s website, they can keep hot drinks warm for at least seven hours, and cold drinks cool for at least 11 hours. In 2023, as the product grew in popularity, the company made $750 million in revenue, [ten times the $75 million revenue](https://www.forbes.com/sites/marcuscollins/2024/01/05/stanley-cup-craze-floods-tiktok-feeds-raises-750-million-in-revenue/) it made in 2022\. But all that attention has also brought more scrutiny to the product. TikTok users and other social media influencers have been testing the tumblers for lead, with some claiming that the results showed lead was present in the cups. Lead can be harmful if ingested, particularly in children younger than six, [notes the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)](https://www.cdc.gov/nceh/lead/docs/recalls-due-to-lead-hazards.html), adding that "the effects of lead poisoning can be permanent and disabling." In response to the concern, [Stanley told NBC News](https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/stanley-cups-contain-lead-pose-risk-lead-poisoning-experts-weigh-rcna135584) that while they do use a lead pellet in the manufacturing process, in order to help insulate drinks from outside temperatures, it is covered by stainless steel and would not be able to contaminate drinks unless the stainless steel barrier was removed, which the Stanley spokesperson told NBC was possible but “rare.” “Our engineering and supply chain teams are making progress on innovative, alternative materials for use in the sealing process,” the spokesperson said. Stanley also reiterated that it follows all FDA guidelines and requirements during the manufacturing process. ### More From TIME TIME reached out to Stanley for further information regarding its use of lead and plans for future alternatives. The concern surrounding the materials used by Stanley comes after limited-edition tumblers [caused a frenzy at Target](https://time.com/6552422/stanley-cup-craze-target/), with crowds of people rushing to buy the Cosmo Pink and Target Red cups, released on Dec. 31, as part of a “Galentine’s Collection.” ## Transcript But these are Lance's disarm mirror. Will be sent through the mirror. The our research found that there are on average a quarter of a million particles including both micro classes and Nano plastic per liter of the bottled water. If it does not stop and magnetize it can actually go even smaller. So Wednesday the size below what micro Nano plastic cuz now it's saying it's sizes in another Branch. There are actually I don't have nice people, they use to study nanoparticles that is called electromagnet coffee. They can actually see very tiny particles of matter that but they don't tell you If the particle is plastic or not, so our techniques is kind of dumb, combines the both benefits of being able to see smaller and then be able to tell that what type of plastic chemical composition is that I mean, what are we see or not? It's out there. So it's better that we actually know how much is out there and what they are but I myself as a scientist. I would want more data in terms of the toxicology study to actually know that whatever help people you would be to my own body. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/6588909/stanley-cups-contain-lead-concerns-response-viral/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/6588909/stanley-cups-contain-lead-concerns-response-viral/"},"headline":"Stanley Responds to Concern Its Viral Cups Contain Lead","datePublished":"2024-01-26T14:16:37.000Z","dateModified":"2026-08-04T07:44:50.310Z","description":"Stanley cups are a viral sensation and have become a must-have staple amongst social media influencers.","url":"https://time.com/6588909/stanley-cups-contain-lead-concerns-response-viral/","keywords":["Living","News Desk","storyladder"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt12b7aa7b3dd705c0/698a4430cabb1d799de522bc/GettyImages-1950960506-1.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Anna Gordon","jobTitle":"Gordon was a reporter for TIME, based in the London bureau.","url":"https://time.com/author/anna-gordon/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt12b7aa7b3dd705c0/698a4430cabb1d799de522bc/GettyImages-1950960506-1.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"US-LIFESTYLE-RETAIL-CUP","caption":"US-LIFESTYLE-RETAIL-CUP","creditText":"Frederic J. 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