Mycotoxins in Food: Evaluation of Aflatoxin B1 and Ochratoxin A in a Few Foodstuffs in Côte D'Ivoire

Abstract

A b s t r a c t A r t i c l e I n f oThe objective of this work was to determine the occurrence of mycotoxins like aflatoxin B1and ochratoxin A in a few foodstuffs consumed by the Ivorian population. The levels of AFB1 are higher than the contents of OTA. Dry gumbo is the most contaminated food in AFB1 with an average grade of 71.18 μg/kg. Adjovan has an average AFB1 concentration of 64.65 μg/kg. The levels of AFB1 of cassava are on average 4.17μg/kg. Dried maize is the least contaminated commodity with an average concentration of 2.28 μg/kg. The mean levels of Aflatoxin B1 in the range of 4.17 to 71.18 μg -1 .kg -1 exceed the maximum residue limit (MRL) of 2 μg/kg for cereals and vegetables and 5 μg/kg for spices. The most contaminated samples of ochratoxin A (OTA) samples were dry cassava and adjovan with average concentrations of 0.94 μg/kg and 0.92 μg/kg. Low levels are 0.60 μg/kg and 0.48 μg/kg respectively for dry gumbo and dry maize. These mean OTA values of the samples analyzed are well below the maximum residue limit (MRL) of 5 μg/kg for vegetables, cereals and spices. This study presents the results concerning the safety assessment of a few foodstuffs regarding mycotoxins in Côte d'Ivoire.