Aflatoxins in maize flour produced in Mozambique and its risk assessment

ABSTRACT

This study investigated the occurrence of aflatoxins (B1, B2, G1, and G2) in maize flour produced in Mozambique and to assess the associated carcinogenic risk. At different opportunities, 30 samples of maize flour were collected in five flour processing factories. These were determined by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with fluorescence detection. AFB1 concentrations ranged from 0.25 to 0.33 μg kg⁻¹. The levels of total aflatoxins ranged from 0.55 to 1.05 μg kg⁻¹, with a mean of 0.89 μg kg⁻¹, for which maximum limits (MLs) are 10 and 4 μg kg⁻¹ for Mozambique and the European Union, respectively. The calculated Margin of Exposure (MOE) for men and women was 243 and 231, respectively, so several folds below the risk cut-off level, indicating that consumption of such maize flour poses a potential risk of hepatocarcinoma related to aflatoxin exposure due to high intake of this food, a staple diet in most African countries.

KEYWORDS:

• Mycotoxins
• maize products
• risk assessment
• mozambique, food security

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Funding

The author(s) reported that there is no funding associated with the work featured in this article.