The occurrence of aflatoxin in rice worldwide: A review

Abstract

Rice is the second largest quantity staple international traded cereal and is produced in climatic areas favorable to aflatoxin production, which affects such trading. This review article is to show and explain the levels of aflatoxin contamination of rice worldwide; in general, the contamination is low and varies from country to country. However, the high daily intake of rice makes even these lower levels of concern, as aflatoxin B1 is carcinogenic and has been correlated with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) incidence in some countries. In addition, the analytical procedures, the permissible limits used worldwide have been reviewed and discussed.