Aflatoxin, which has been frequently mentioned in the field of food safety in our country and in the world, is one of the many chemical substances produced by some of the molds. That We encounter molds everywhere in our daily lives and that significantly affects our lives. Aflatoxin comes from the name of the mold that produces it (Aspergillus flavus) and the word "toxin" meaning poison. Aflatoxins are produced mainly by the molds Aspergillus flavus, Aspergillus parasiticus, and Aspergillus nomius and are highly toxic substances. Aflatoxins are dangerous and important mycotoxins that are commonly found in many foods including grains, oilseeds, spices, meat and meat products, milk and dairy products, and animal feed. Aflatoxins should not be considered harmless molds found only on foods because they can cause cancer, genetic mutation, immune suppression, and developmental disorders in the womb. They also pose a great danger to humans and animals due to their resistance to heat treatment.

Molds produce aflatoxins under suitable environmental conditions. Factors affecting aflatoxin production and mold growth are humidity, relative humidity, climate, temperature, harvest period and conditions, ventilation, environmental factors, storage conditions, competitive flora, and substrate concentration. Molds that can grow in the temperature range of 10-45 ºC ideally develop at 20-30 ℃ and start to produce toxins. However, various nutrients such as vitamins, minerals, amino acids, fatty acids, and energy sources are also needed for the formation of aflatoxins. In addition, it should not be forgotten that the absence of molds in the structures that we can detect with our eyes in various foods we consume in daily life does not mean that there is no aflatoxin in these foods.

Are the foods you consume frequently and fondly at high risk of aflatoxin contamination?

Foods at high risk of aflatoxin contamination;

• Pistachio
• Hazelnut
• Walnut
• Peanuts
• Rice
• Corn
• Wheat
• Baby food
• Milk and dairy products
• Dried foods such as figs and spices (especially red chili peppers).

Early intervention is possible before the food gets moldy and goes to waste. In this case, what needs to be done is to explain to inpiduals the conditions of mold growth on foods and what to do. It should be known that even if the mold structure is removed by physical processes such as washing, spoon scraping, cutting, heat treatment, the danger continues after these applications. The main point to be learned is how to protect foods before they become moldy.

• Care should be taken to prevent mold contamination in stages such as harvesting the raw material of the food in the field, storage, transportation, processing, product obtaining and preservation.
• Hygiene and sanitation must be ensured correctly and adequately.
• Care should be taken to consume dried fruits and nuts that have been opened and come into contact with air in a short time, and if not, to store them in a cool, dry and dark environment.
• Care should be taken not to buy foods such as spices and nuts from places where they are sold in the open and where you are not sure of their safety.
• We should take care to take spices little by little, not to keep the spices near the stove and not to sprinkle directly from the spice rack to the food by hand. This will minimize the dangers of moisture-induced aflatoxin.

Did you know that more than 4.5 billion people worldwide are exposed to food contaminated with varying amounts of aflatoxins? Contamination jeopardizes food safety and public health. Aflatoxins can occur at all levels, from harvesting to processing and storage. Contamination is particularly affected by humidity and temperature conditions. Contamination of food with aflatoxins occurs in three different ways: direct, indirect and transport.

Direct contamination is caused by the growth of mycotoxin-producing molds that are visibly noticeable in foods. Contamination occurs in plant products starting from the ripening stage in the field, at harvest, during drying and mostly during storage. For peanuts and hazelnuts, toxin contamination generally starts at the drying stage of harvested products. Broken, damaged hazelnut and peanut shells allow mold mycelia to pass into the kernel inside and form mycotoxins.

Indirect contamination occurs when raw materials or food additives are contaminated with mycotoxins and used in food production. Examples of indirect contamination include the use of contaminated fruits in fruit juice and concentrates, the production of dried figs and fig paste from figs containing aflatoxin, the use of contaminated peanuts in products such as peanut butter. The spices we use to add flavor and aroma to food are often contaminated with mycotoxins.

Contamination by transport occurs when lactating dairy cows fed aflatoxin-containing feed metabolize these toxins in their bodies and pass them into milk.

What to do next to control contamination of food with aflatoxins;

1. Prevent contamination and spread of mold
2. Detoxifying contaminated products
3. Preventing aflatoxin absorption in the digestive tract after consumption of toxincontaining Foods

Aflatoxins, which are mostly taken into the human body through food, are encountered through the mouth, respiration, and skin. Aflatoxin specifically targets the liver. Early signs of hepatotoxicity include fever, decreased appetite, weakness, abdominal pain, vomiting, and hepatitis. Acute poisoning cases are exceptional and rare. Studies have revealed the harmful effects of aflatoxins on the liver, epididymis, testes, kidneys, and heart.

Is all cheese moldy cheese? According to studies on the conditions of moldy cheese production, it is a danger to public health that they may contain mycotoxins because mold formation is allowed to occur naturally without the use of pure culture. Therefore; please Do not eat every moldy cheese in the fridge. Are you one of those who scrape the mold off your tomato paste? What would you think if we told you that this method, which you often use in your kitchen, is not very helpful? The presence of Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus paraciticus in tomatoes and their products, which have a soft structure in terms of texture, and the risk of toxins that can be produced by these molds is high. In other words, the dangers of molds continue after these applications. In homemade tomato paste, failure to select suitable tomatoes (tomatoes that have waited too long in the field, tomatoes that have not been harvested under suitable weather conditions, tomatoes that have been subjected to physical and biological impacts during collection and transportation), failure to ensure hygiene conditions during the production of tomato paste, failure to ensure that the containers in which the tomato paste will be stored are not completely dry, airy or inappropriate storage conditions may cause mold formation in tomato paste. Therefore, care should be taken to ensure that appropriate raw materials, hygiene, and storage conditions are provided for homemade tomato paste. Storing food by drying is a traditional method that has been used for many years. In our country, sun drying technique is frequently used for this purpose. Fruits and vegetables are ready for consumption by passing through various drying stages. However, environmental factors such as insufficient drying, inappropriate temperature, humidity, and light make dried fruits susceptible to mold contamination and mycotoxins. A common culinary truism is that dry foods don't spoil for long. However, the situation is a little different. For example, peanuts face the risk of aflatoxin in the steps from growing to preservation. Again, dried figs are a good example of these types of foods. Picking under unsafe conditions, drying under unhygienic conditions, inadequate storage conditions, and high sugar content lead to mold growth, resulting in dried figs with aflatoxin contamination.