Co-occurrence of aflatoxin B 1 , fumonisin B 1 , ochratoxin A and zearalenone in cereals and peanuts from Côte d’Ivoire

This survey examined 30 samples of rice (n = 10), maize (n = 10) and peanuts (n = 10) from Cote d'Ivoire for aflatoxin B-1, fumonisin B-1 and zearalenone using immunoassays, and ochratoxin A using a validated HPLC method with fluorescence detection. In Cote d'Ivoire, as in other countries, several mycotoxins are present in the same commodities. These mycotoxins are from different structural families: aflatoxin B-1, fumonisin B-1, zearalenone and ochratoxin A, normally produced by fungal species from Aspergillus, Penicillium and Fusarium genera. Some samples contained four mycotoxins (86%). Four peanuts samples did not show ochratoxin A (14%), whereas they contained aflatoxin B-1 concentrations above the EU regulatory limits. Concentrations of ochratoxin A, zearalenone and fumonisin B-1 were low and may not cause problems per se; however, fears remain that the tolerable daily intake may be exceeded due to eating habits and synergistic effects could be important with the combination of several mycotoxins. Investigations in this direction are underway, together with isolation and characterization of the fungal species involved.