Mitigating Aflatoxin Contamination in Grains: The Importance of Postharvest Management Practices

Résumé

Grains are the most important food staples for humans and livestock animals.Grains are susceptible to fungal attacks while in the field and/or storage.The toxigenic fungi not only cause quality deterioration and grain loss but also produce toxic secondary metabolites.Known as mycotoxins, the most important ones regarding their occurrence and toxicity are aflatoxins (AFs), which can cause many bad effects on humans and animals ingested.AFs may cause acute or chronic diseases such as carcinogenic, mutagenic, teratogenic, and hepatotoxic.Numerous studies around the world indicate that the contamination of most grains with one or more types of AFs leads to large economic losses, such as food commodity rejection by many countries (EU authorities, for example).To protect human beings and animals from these health risks, many countries have established regulations to limit exposure to AFs, as well as several strategies and measures to mitigate both the presence and concentration of AFs.For that, the purpose of this state of art is to present the status of aflatoxin contamination at the local and global levels in the main grains (corn, wheat, and rice), along with the most important methods and strategies proposed to mitigate AFs, which can be divided into physical, chemical, and biological methods during post-harvest.

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