Evaluation of the mycological status of luncheon meat with special reference to aflatoxigenic moulds and aflatoxin residues.

The luncheon meat samples analyzed, which were produced locally by the two main luncheon meat producing companies in Egypt were relatively highly contaminated either by moulds and yeasts in general, aflatoxigenic species and aflatoxin residues in particular. The most frequently encountered fungi from the samples were yeasts, Aspergillus niger, A. flavus, Penicillium chrysogenum, Rhizopus stolonifer, Mucor circinelloides. Less common were Cladosporium sphaerospermum, Alternaria alternata, Mycosphaerella tassiana, P. aurantiogriseum and P. oxalicum. The most important aflatoxigenic species, A. flavus, was isolated frequently. It was 10% of the total fungal isolates from both samples of the two companies. Seven luncheon meat samples out of 50 analyzed were positive for aflatoxin B1 or B1 and G1, while all samples were negative for aflatoxins B2, G2, M1 and M2. Aflatoxin B1 was detected only in 4 and 3 samples out of 25 analyzed from each of company A and B, respectively. The highest detectable level, 11.1 ppb, was recorded in a sample from company B and the least, 0.5 ppb, in a sample from company A. Aflatoxin G1, at concentration of 3.2 ppb, was detected in only one sample of the aflatoxin B1--contaminated 3 samples of company B: this sample also had the highest level of aflatoxin B1. Some luncheon meat samples had higher numbers of aflatoxigenic A. flavus than others, however these samples were negative for aflatoxins. The hazardous potential of such contamination will be discussed.