Studies on occurrence of mycotoxins in milk and milk products of North Telangana region

Abstract

Aflatoxin contamination is a worldwide problem with regard to food and feed safety. Aflatoxins are extremely potent carcinogens and can have significant economic impacts, making them important targets for prevention and control. Due to their toxicity, stringent regulations have been imposed on aflatoxin contents in various foods and dairy products. Despite the fact that most national and international organizations have set legal permissible limits of aflatoxins in food commodities, their contamination and persistence in foods and feeds remain a major challenge to public health. Unseasonal rains and floods are very common in India and this increases the moisture content of the grains and other feedstuffs, hence they are easily susceptible to fungal attack. Indeed many studies have demonstrated the presence of high concentrations of aflatoxins in dairy animals feed and ingredients in India. Inclusion of AFB1 contaminated feedstuff in dairy animal s diet increases the chances of significant AFM1 contamination in the milk. The incidence levels of AFM1 in milk in developing countries like India are higher and more frequent than in developed countries. This difference may be attributed to several factors, including lack of regulations on aflatoxins in dairy animals feed and milk products, unawareness of the problem amongst dairy farmers, inadequate analytical facilities, improper farm management practices, and lack of suitable feed storage facilities. The occurrence of AFM1 in milk has been reported by several workers in different states of India. However, there has been paucity of information available on the occurrence and levels of AFM1 in milk and milk products from this region. Therefore, the objective of this study was to assess the occurrence of AFM1 in different types of milk and to evaluate its geographical and seasonal variation in North Telangana region, India. The results of this study will facilitate continuous surveillance, future risk analysis and management of AFM1 in milk and milk products to