Mycotoxins affect poultry production by being present in the feed and directly causing a negative impact on bird performance. Carry-over rates of mycotoxins in animal products are, in general, small (except for aflatoxins in milk and eggs) therefore representing a small source of mycotoxins for humans. Mycotoxins present directly in human food represent a much higher risk. The contamination of poultry feed by aflatoxins was determined as a first assessment of this risk in Cameroon. A total of 201 samples of maize, peanut meal, broiler and layer feeds were collected directly at poultry farms, poultry production sites and poultry feed dealers in three agroecological zones (AEZs) of Cameroon and analyzed for moisture content and aflatoxin levels. The results indicate that the mean of the moisture content of maize (14.1%) was significantly (P < 0.05) higher than all other commodities (10.0%–12.7%). Approximately 9% of maize samples were positive for aflatoxin, with concentrations overall ranging from <2 to 42 µg/kg. Most of the samples of peanut meal (100%), broiler (93.3%) and layer feeds (83.0%) were positive with concentrations of positive samples ranging from 39 to 950 µg/kg for peanut meal, 2 to 52 µg/kg for broiler feed and 2 to 23 µg/kg for layer feed. The aflatoxin content of layer feed did not vary by AEZ, while the highest (16.8 µg/kg) and the lowest (8.2 µg/kg) aflatoxin content of broiler feed were respectively recorded in Western High Plateau and in Rainforest agroecological zones. These results suggest that peanut meal is likely to be a high risk feed, and further investigation is needed to guide promotion of safe feeds for poultry in Cameroon.

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24Food security considerations have shifted in recent years, with the recognition that available food 25 should also be nutritious and safe. There is a growing evidence base for contamination of maize 26 and other crops by fungal toxins in the tropics and sub-tropics. As an initial snapshot of 27 contamination by one of these toxins in Rwanda, Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) was analyzed in 684 28 samples of maize flour collected in seven principal retail markets of Kigali and in 21 samples of 29 animal feed from seven feed vendors. Two rounds of sample collections were carried out, the 30 first in September 2014 and the second in January 2015. A questionnaire given to vendors was 31 used to determine if gender and education level of vendors, origin of maize and awareness of 32 aflatoxins had any significant effect on AFB1 level in collected samples. Enzyme-Linked 33 Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) and Immuno-affinity fluorimetery were used to analyze samples. 34 Only markets had a significant effect on AFB1 level; for the two collections, differences were 35 inconsistent among markets. In the first round, market means of AFB1 varied between 8.0+5.57 36 µg/kg and 24.7+23.74 µg/kg and for the second round, between 10.4+8.4 µg/kg and 25.7+25.85 37 µg/kg. In most animal feed samples AFB1 was >100 µg/kg. None of the vendors interviewed 38 was aware of the risk of mycotoxin contamination in their maize-based flours and feed. Limits 39 set by the United States Food and Drug Administration (20 µg/kg) for total aflatoxins and 40 European Commission (2 µg/kg) for AFB1 for maize flour imports, were varied between 2-35% 41 and 66-100% of samples, respectively. The implications of this study for human and animal 42 health in Rwanda suggest that expanded surveys are needed to understand the scope of 43 contamination, given the influence of environment and other factors on aflatoxin accumulation. 44 Available options to mitigate and monitor aflatoxin contamination can be further deployed to 45 reduce contamination.46 47

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Soybean is a critical food and nutritional security crop in Rwanda. Promoted by the Rwandan National Agricultural Research System for both adults and as an infant weaning food, soybean is grown by approximately 40% of households. Soybean may be susceptible to the growth of mycotoxin-producing moulds; however, data has been contradictory. Mycotoxin contamination is a food and feed safety issue for grains and other field crops. This study aimed to determine the extent of mycotoxin contamination in soybean, and to assess people's awareness on mycotoxins. A farm-level survey was conducted in 2015 within three agro-ecological zones of Rwanda suitable for soybean production. Soybean samples were collected from farmers (n=300) who also completed questionnaires about pre-and post-harvest farm practices, and aflatoxin awareness. The concentration of total aflatoxin in individual soybean samples was tested by enzymelinked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) using a commercially-available kit. Other mycotoxins were analyzed using liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) on 10 selected sub samples. Only 7.3% of the respondents were aware of aflatoxin contamination in foods, but farmers observed good postharvest practices including harvesting the crop when the pods were dry. Using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), only one sample had a concentration (11 µg/kg) above the most stringent EU maximum permitted limit of 4 µg/kg. Multi-mycotoxins liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) results confirmed that soybeans had low or undetectable contamination; only one sample contained 13µg/kg of sterigmatocystine. The soybean samples from Rwanda obtained acceptably low mycotoxin levels. Taken together with other studies that showed that soybean is less contaminated by mycotoxins, these results demonstrate that soybean can be promoted as a nutritious and safe food. However, there is a general need for educating farmers on mycotoxin contamination in food and feed to ensure better standards are adhered to safeguard the health of the consumers regarding these fungal secondary metabolites.