Determination of Aflatoxin Levels in Cashews on Turkish Markets

Abstract

The problem of food contamination with aflatoxin is one of the current concerns and has received a great deal of attention during the last three decades. Aflatoxins are a group of highly toxic secondary metabolic products as some Aspergillus species. Aflatoxins are carcinogenic, mutagenic, teratogenic and immunosuppressive to most animal species and humans. They are considered to be one of the most important food contaminants affecting food safety and public health. The aim of the study is to determine the level of aflatoxins in cashews on Turkish markets. Samples were analyzed by reverse phase HPLC containing post column derivatization and fluorescence detection after immunoaffinity column clean-up. AOAC (999.07) was used in as the methodology of the study. In this study, aflatoxin B1 and total aflatoxins (B1+B2+G1+G2) were analyzed in totally 50 samples of cashews. A total of 50 samples of cashew samples were obtained randomly from supermarkets in Istanbul. Aflatoxins were found in 14 out of 50 samples (28%) of cashews (B1: 0.26-0.32 ppb; total: 0.5-0.84 ppb). All positive samples did not exceed the maximum limit of 2 mu g kg(-1) set by EU regulations for aflatoxin B1 and total aflatoxin (4 mu g kg(-1)). Although the aflatoxin contamination in cashew samples is very low, aflatoxin analysis should be. done strictly for human health.