Survey of the occurrence of aflatoxin M1 in dairy products marketed in Iran

Abstract

In this survey the incidence of aflatoxin M1 (AFM1) contamination in some dairy products collected from the Iran market was investigated using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) technique. From February 2011 to February 2012, a total of 200 samples composed of yoghurt (60 samples), cheese (80 samples), and ice-cream (60 samples) showed that 75.5% of the tested samples were contaminated with various levels of AFM1 ranging from 14.3 to 572.1 ng/L. AFM1 was detected in 48 (80.0%) yoghurt samples (ranging from 19.7 to 319.4 ng/L), in 69 (86.3%) chesses samples (ranging from 14.3 to 572.1 ng/L) and in 34 (56.7%) of ice cream samples ranging from (ranging from14.9 to 147.4 ng/L). Eleven of cheese samples (13.8%) and three of yoghurt samples (5.0%) were higher that maximum tolerance limit accepted by European union/codex Alimentarius (250 ng/L). It was concluded that widespread occurrence of AFM1 in cheese samples was considered to be possible hazards for public health especially for children. This study suggests a regular monitoring of AFM1 in milk and milk products in the country.