Yerba Mate and Copper – Is It a Good Source of This Mineral?

Yerba mate and copper is a question from the same family as questions about zinc, iodine or sodium that we’ve already covered in this series – someone is looking for yet another mineral in the leaf of Paraguayan holly before checking their plate. We answer just as honestly: how much copper is really in the dried leaves and infusion, what the body actually needs this copper for, and whether matero plays any role at all in the daily balance.

Yerba mate and copper – how much is really in the dried leaves

As with zinc, the available mineral analyses of the yerba leaf focus mainly on potassium, magnesium, calcium and iron – these dominate the composition tables because they are present in the greatest amounts. Copper is mentioned less often, and the values that do appear range from single micrograms to fractions of a milligram per 100 g of dried leaves, with a clear spread between studies and leaf batches. We don’t have one hard number we could state with full confidence, so we’re writing this plainly instead of rounding up for a better marketing effect.

The reference intake value for copper for an adult, adopted in EU food labelling regulations, is 1 mg per day. That’s not much compared to magnesium or potassium, but it’s still much more than yerba alone realistically provides – even with an optimistic reading from the tables, you’d have to drink an amount of it that no one actually drinks in practice to get close to that value from the infusion alone.

Why the composition of dried leaves and the composition of the infusion are two different numbers

We already wrote about this in relation to zinc and phosphorus in yerba – dry leaves are not the same as the infusion you drink through a bombilla. When drinking from a matero, you don’t eat the leaf, you pour hot water over it, and the wet leaves stay in the vessel and end up in the bin after a few rounds. How much of the copper contained in the leaf actually passes into the water depends on the solubility of that particular compound, the temperature of the water and the number of cebadas the leaves can still withstand.

There are no reliable, repeatable studies that specifically isolate copper in yerba infusion, unlike potassium or magnesium, which are well studied in this regard. It’s safest to assume that whatever is already a trace amount in the dried leaves becomes even smaller in a cup of infusion – small enough that it makes no sense to count it towards your daily copper balance.

What the body needs copper for

Copper has its place on the list of officially approved health claims under EU food law. Among other things, it contributes to the normal function of the immune system, to the maintenance of normal connective tissue, to normal iron transport in the body, and to the protection of cells from oxidative stress. It also takes part in the production of melanin and in maintaining normal function of the nervous system.

That’s a fairly broad range of tasks for a mineral that’s rarely talked about – but no single beverage, especially yerba mate, which contains very little copper, can replace that. If you suspect a deficiency, the right path is to talk to a doctor and get a blood test, not to count matero rounds.

Cashew nuts or yerba mate – which one will actually give you more copper

We offer cashew nuts, which are among the food products with a really high copper content – one of the classic examples given in nutrition tables, alongside liver, seafood (especially oysters and lobster), sesame seeds, sunflower seeds and dark chocolate with a high cocoa content. A handful of cashew nuts in your porridge or salad brings you noticeably closer to your daily requirement for this mineral, in a way that drinking Yerba Mate alone simply cannot.

The conclusion is the same as with other minerals in this series – Yerba Mate is a drink you reach for because of its flavour, the ritual of drinking from a bombilla and a reasonable dose of caffeine, not to fill mineral gaps in your diet. That’s what specific food products are for, in much larger portions than one round of matero.

Who should pay special attention to copper in their diet

For most people with a varied diet, copper takes care of itself, since it occurs in many plant and animal products at once. However, a few groups have an increased risk of deficiency:

• people on restrictive elimination diets that limit nuts, seeds and offal at the same time,
• people taking long-term high doses of zinc supplements, because excess zinc limits copper absorption,
• people after bariatric surgery and those with absorption disorders, e.g. coeliac disease,
• people on a vegan diet, if they don’t consciously plan it with nuts and seeds in mind,
• premature newborns, whose copper stores from the prenatal period are smaller.

There’s also another side of the coin worth knowing about: in Wilson’s disease, a rare genetic disorder, the body accumulates copper instead of eliminating it, so people with this diagnosis deliberately limit their intake under a doctor’s supervision. This shows that copper – like most minerals – is a matter of balance, not a case of “the more, the better”.

How much yerba per day for this to matter

Since copper from yerba is, at best, a negligible addition, the amount of infusion you drink should be chosen mainly with caffeine in mind, not minerals. For a healthy adult, 2–3 servings a day, meaning a few rounds of matero spread throughout the day, is a range most people tolerate without any issues, as long as they don’t reach for yerba right before bed. If you specifically care about copper in your diet, a handful of cashew nuts or a piece of dark chocolate will work far more effectively than an extra round of matero.

Where our dried leaves come from

The mineral composition of yerba also depends on where the leaf comes from and how it was dried. Our Yerbador dried leaves come with an analysis certificate from the Institute of Natural Fibres and Medicinal Plants (IWNIRZ, chromatography and authenticity confirmation), compliance with the standard confirmed by J.S. Hamilton, and testing for heavy metals, pesticides and PAHs performed by GBA Polska. On top of that, there are ECOCERT and Organic Brasil certifications, as well as HACCP throughout the production chain. In a topic where the figures on copper themselves are uncertain, what matters more is that the dried leaves come from a verified source, without the risk of heavy metal contamination that could throw off any mineral balance.

Our products to try

If you want real support for your copper intake, reach for cashew nuts from our range. If you simply want to introduce yerba as a light mineral-and-energy addition, start with dried leaves with a full, classic profile.

Check out the product: Cashew Nuts 250 g

Check out the product: Yerba Mate Immuno

Check out the product: Sunflower Seeds

Cashew nuts and sunflower seeds make a great duo for a homemade trail mix – a handful of each added to yoghurt or a salad brings you noticeably closer to your daily copper target, which yerba alone won’t provide.

Yerba Mate and Copper – Frequently Asked Questions

Is yerba mate a good source of copper?
No. The available data on the copper content of yerba is scarce and inconsistent, and even with optimistic readings, we’re talking about trace amounts. Cashew nuts, seafood or dark chocolate provide it in amounts that actually matter.

How much copper is in a yerba infusion?
There’s no single reliable figure – published analyses rarely isolate copper separately, and where it does appear, it’s in micrograms, with a wide range. We’d rather say this plainly than present an uncertain number as fact.

Do cashew nuts have more copper than yerba?
Definitely yes. Cashew nuts are a well-established, well-documented source of dietary copper, unlike yerba, where this mineral appears only in trace amounts.

Who should pay particular attention to copper in their diet?
Mainly people on restrictive elimination diets, people supplementing high doses of zinc long-term, and people with absorption disorders, e.g. after bariatric surgery.

Is excess copper harmful?
Yes, in people with Wilson’s disease the body accumulates copper instead of eliminating it, so they must consciously limit their intake under a doctor’s supervision. For a healthy person with a typical diet, excess copper from food is rare.