Journal of Food Quality and Hazards Control

116-118

Authors: V. Ranaei, Z. Pilevar, H. Hosseini

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128-135

Authors: R. Omari, G. Anyebuno

Background: Complementary foods are given to infants when breast milk alone becomes insufficient in meeting their nutritional needs. The major objective of this study was to assess the prevalence of Aflatoxins (AFs) in Weanimix complementary foods purchased from shops in Accra (Ghana), and to estimate risk of liver cancer development in infants. Methods: In total, 32 samples of Weanimix were purchased from shops in Accra, an urban centre and analyzed for AFs by Reverse-Phase High Performance Liquid Chromatography (RP-HPLC). Previously published data on levels of AFs in Weanimix prepared in rural households were also collected. The data was analyzed to estimate infants’ daily exposure to AFs as well as the risk of liver cancer development. Results: AFs levels of 18.8% of samples were above the maximum permitted limit of 10 µg/kg. The minimum and maximum levels of total AFs detected in all samples were 2.51 and 98.87 µg/kg, respectively with a mean value of 16.43 µg/kg. Exposure assessment showed that the minimum and maximum daily AFs exposures were 0.044 and 2.805 µg/kg bw/d, respectively for Weanimix from rural households; these rates for Weanimix purchased from urban shops were 0.014 and 0.55 µg/kg bw/d, respectively. The chances of liver cancer development would increase to 0.6 per year if infants were fed on Weanimix prepared in rural households with minimum AF level of 7.9 µg/kg. Conclusion: The infants fed on Weanimix prepared in rural households would be at a higher risk of AF exposure and liver cancer development than infants fed on Weanimix purchased from urban shops of Ghana.

142-148

Authors: R. Banda, J. Nduko, J. Matofari

Background: Some microorganisms can adhere to food handling surfaces forming biofilms that pose a safety challenge. This study was done to evaluate bacterial biofilm formation in milking equipments in Lilongwe, Malawi. Methods: Pooled milk (n=54) and water (n=60) samples were collected from households and milk bulking groups in Lilongwe, Malawi. Swabbing (n=46) and rinsing (n=16) were done on milk handling containers after cleaning. Biofilm determination on the containers was done by detecting biofilm indicator bacteria, including Bacillus spp., Salmonella spp., and Pseudomonas spp. The strength of biofilm was determined by the tube method. Data were analyzed by SAS software version 9.1.3. Results: Prevalence rates of Gram-negative rods were significantly (p<0.05) higher than the Gram-positive rods and the Gram-positive cocci. Of the 176 cases,contamination rates were 36 (20.4%), 32 (18.2%), and 18 (10.2%) for Salmonella spp., Bacillus spp., and Pseudomonas spp., respectively. The biofilm indicator organisms were significantly (p<0.05) more prevalent in dairy farmer households compared with the milk bulking centers. Fourteen out of 86 (16.3%) microbial isolates formed strong/high biofilms, whereas 18 out of 86 (20.93%) of isolates did not form any biofilm. The rate of isolates forming strong/high biofilms in households (17.6%) was significantly (p<0.05) higher than that of milk bulking centers (11.1%). Conclusion: Biofilm formation on milk handling container surfaces in Lilongwe, Malawi could serve as a source of microbial pathogens and spoilage organisms.

157-161

Authors: S. Lasram, Z. Hamdi, A. Ghorbel

Background: Ochratoxin A (OTA) and Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) are toxic secondary metabolites produced by certain mold species. In this primarily survey, we examined the OTA and AFB1 contamination of pearl millet grains distributed in Tunisia. Methods: Twenty-five pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum L.) samples from different regions of Tunisia were analyzed by High Performance Liquid Chromatography coupled with fluorescence detector in order to evaluate the contamination with of AFB1 and OTA. Statistical tests were performed with XLSTAT 2018. Results: AFB1 and OTA were detected in 32 and 28% millet samples, respectively. Mean amounts of these mycotoxins in the contaminated samples were of 24.54±17.54 µg/kg for OTA and 22.72±23.09 µg/kg for AFB1. Approximately, 28 and 24% of analyzed samples were found above the European Union limits for AFB1 and OTA, respectively. The estimated daily intake of OTA and AFB1 were 3.76 and 3.89 ng/kg b.w. per day, respectively. No significantly (p>0.05) difference in OTA and AFB1 contamination rate was found between samples taken from different regions. Conclusion: Consumption of millet in Tunisia might be an important contributing factor to the risk of dietary exposure to OTA and AFB1.