The contamination of Aspergillus flavus and subsequent aflatoxins (AFs) has been considered as one of the most serious food safety problems due to their acute and chronic adverse effects on humans and animals. This review collects the available information from recent years on the effect of the major environmental factors such as water activity (aw), temperature, CO2, and pH on the fungal growth, the expression of AFs-related genes, and AFs production by A. flavus on foods. In particular, the relationship between the relative expression of key regulatory (aflR and aflS) and structural genes (aflD, aflO, aflQ, etc.) and AFs production under different environmental conditions are collected and discussed. The information collected in this review can be used to design control strategies of A. flavus and AFs contamination in practical applications, primarily during storage and processing. These data suggest that integrating various post-harvest methods with synergistic functions may be more efficient for the control of A. flavus growth and AFs production, although the individual environmental factors alone have an impact.

Mycotoxins can cause genotoxic, mutagenic, teratogenic, and carcinogenic effects in humans and animals. Mycotoxins inevitably exist widely in all kinds of food and feed commodities, of which cereals are the most susceptible. In one of the largest cereal producing and consuming regions in the world, mycotoxin contamination causes about 1 billion metric tons of food loss annually, which also influences a serious decline of Asian economic development. This Review is based on three databases, PubMed, Google Scholar, and Web of Science, including studies that were published in English in the period from January 1, 2016 to October 1, 2022. Results show the current status and control strategies of the aflatoxins, ochratoxin A, zearalenone, deoxynivalenol, and fumonisins in Asia. Developed countries in Asia should maintain strict monitoring and establish an effective control system for the whole food production chain, while developing countries should strengthen the prevention and control strategies for mycotoxins.