Food safety
A rapid aflatoxin testing kit and airtight storage containers are helping farmers reduce contamination in their maize and other stored crops. Cost-effective and easy to use, the technologies are also useful tools for traders and public health authorities looking to identify and manage aflatoxin exposure.
A new testing kit that can detect aflatoxin contamination in crops such as maize and groundnuts without the need for laboratory facilities has been developed by the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT). According to ICRISAT researchers, the rapid test kit device is affordable, at under €2, making it a cost-effective way for farmers to detect aflatoxin instantly.
The new test is simple to perform and can detect contamination at levels of 10 parts per billion in less than 15 minutes. As such, it will be a useful tool not only for farmers, but also for traders wishing to check for contamination before concluding a sale. Public health authorities could potentially use the kit to check suspected samples in cases of aflatoxin poisoning. “The device will contribute to managing and reducing the entry of aflatoxins in food value chains, improving diagnosis for local and export trade and supporting the food processing industry to maintain low exposure levels,” says Dr Anitha Seetha, an ICRISAT scientist based in Malawi.
Researchers from the Cultivate Africa’s Future programme and rural communities in Zimbabwe are also investigating how the use of different types of airtight storage can reduce aflatoxin contamination in maize crops. Working in Shamva and Makoni districts, the team have been testing maize samples under various storage systems, including metal silos and thick plastic ‘super bags’. So far, results have shown that the improved storage systems substantially reduce aflatoxin contamination in maize grain over a 7-month period, with around 270 households testing the different technologies.
Investigations into cost-effectiveness have found the metal silos to offer around 75% more value for money compared to the plastic super bags, because of their 25-year life span and ability to exclude rodents.
The work in Zimbabwe has also included aflatoxin sensitisation for 533 community leaders and 90 other stakeholders, including government ministries, media, UN agencies, NGOs and the private sector. Over 700 farmers have also been trained in pre- and post-harvest aflatoxin reduction methods. Not allowing husked maize cobs to lie on bare soil, and carrying out additional drying of shelled maize prior to storage, are two of the techniques that farmers are being encouraged to adopt.
