Occurrence of aflatoxin in some of the food and feed in Nepal

Abstract

BACKGROUND: There are many contaminants like aflatoxin present in food products. Aflatoxin in comparison to many other contaminants is very toxic and also carcinogenic. There are reports of outbreak of aflatoxin toxicity in many parts of the world. AIM: To find out the level of aflatoxin in common food and feed. SETTING: The study was conducted in 16 districts of the Eastern region of Nepal. METHODS AND MATERIALS: Samples were collected from retailers and whole sellers from 1995 to 2003. Common food items that had high chances of infestation were collected. Food sample were taken to the laboratory to estimate the level of aflatoxin. The thin layer chromatography method was used to detect aflatoxin in the samples and comparison of fluorescence of sample spot with fluorescence of standard for estimation. RESULT: There were 832 samples for aflatoxin detection and estimation. One-third samples were found to be contaminated with aflatoxin. The highest percentage of contamination was found in peanut butter/vegetable oil (42.5%) and the lowest in areca nut (25%). Highest proportion of cornflakes samples were found to be contaminated with aflatoxin by more than the recommended value (30 ppb) and contamination in peanut was the lowest. CONCLUSION: People consume many common food items that contain aflatoxin. It is of high importance for the concerned department to give attention to this important public health issue. Even in small doses, continuous consumption can lead to many health problems. So it is of paramount importance to detect and control these contaminants in food items.

Influence of climatic factors on spatio-temporal variabilities in the occurrence of aflatoxins in major food grains available at retail shops in Bangladesh

“…Systematic investigations made in this study, comparing the variabilities in geoclimatic situations and aflatoxins contamination level in food grains at retail shops, clearly demonstrates that people all over in Bangladesh are highly vulnerable, particularly during post-monsoon season, to aflatoxins exposure and associated chronic health hazards. The estimated overall contamination rate of total aflatoxin (38.1%) in different food grains in this study is in line with results reported previously by several other studies in the region (Koirala et al, 2005;Bhuiyan et al, 2013). Observed variations in the contamination rate in different types of food grains is notable.…”

“…However, the European Union has a more stringent permissible limit with consideration of ≥5 µg kg -1 of total aflatoxins in food grains as unsafe for human consumption (EC, 2010). Occurrence of acute and chronic diseases, including liver cancer, which could be related to the consumption of food contaminated with aflatoxins has been an alarming issue concerning public health in Bangladesh and neighbouring countries in South Asia (Koirala et al, 2005;Toteja et al, 2006;Mahfuz et al, 2019). An estimated of ca.…”

Antioxidants and Aspergillus niger Antifungal Activity in vitro of Flavonoids Extract from Red-Top Leaves of Cratoxylum prunifolium

“…in vitro Aspergillus niger antifungal activity of red-top leaves extraction: Insects and microorganisms can cause pre and post harvest bio-deterioration and spoilage of agricultural product, grains, fruits and vegetables with losses of up to 100 %. Especially, species of Aspergillus fungi causing considerable loss in nutritional quality of grains and seed quality have been reported [52]. Several flavonoids from different plants have been extracted and used to inhibit fungal growth [18,53,54].…”

Changes in Aflatoxin Content During the Processing of Vinegar Obtained From Grape

“…Aflatoxin contamination has been reported in grapes and related products (15)(16)(17). Molds which are in the soil surface of the vineyard contaminate grapes during the harvest.…”