Aflatoxin-M1 contamination in cheese of six countries in the West Asia region: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Mohammadi, S. and Keshavarzi, M. and Kazemi, A. and Rahmdel, S. and Nouri, M. and Rastegar, A. and Ghaffarian-Bahraman, A.

International Journal of Dairy Technology (2022) 75: 653–667

DOI: 10.1111/1471-0307.12866

Abstract

The aim of the present study was to assess Aflatoxin-M1 (AFM1) contamination in cheese samples from the West Asia region. Furthermore, AFM1 contamination was investigated based on the texture type (hard, semi-soft/semi-hard and soft) and the maturation process (matured and fresh) of the cheese sampled. Our results indicated that AFM1 contamination occurs in more than 50% of the cheese samples from all included countries. Our subgroup meta-analyses showed that the occurrence and the average concentration of AFM1, as well as the percentage of the standard maximum allowance exceeding samples in matured cheeses, were lower than unmatured samples.

Citation

Mohammadi, S., Keshavarzi, M., Kazemi, A., Rahmdel, S., Nouri, M., Rastegar, A., & Ghaffarian-Bahraman, A. (2022). Aflatoxin-M1 contamination in cheese of six countries in the West Asia region: a systematic review and meta-analysis. International Journal of Dairy Technology, 75(3), 653–667. https://doi.org/10.1111/1471-0307.12866 meta-analysis, food safety, public health, food contamination, aflatoxins, soft cheese, Cheese, cheese quality, cheesemaking, Aflatoxin B1, Aflatoxin M1, cheese ripening

Keywords

• meta-analysis
• food safety
• public health
• food contamination
• aflatoxins
• soft cheese
• Cheese
• cheese quality
• cheesemaking
• Aflatoxin B1
• Aflatoxin M1
• cheese ripening