Aflatoxins in various food from Istanbul, Turkey.

The present work reports the total aflatoxin and aflatoxin B1 levels in 62 food samples from Istanbul, Turkey. The total aflatoxin content in dried American cucumber, squash, tomato, okra and saffron samples was found to be 1.7 μg/kg. AFB1 levels in five dried vegetables (red bell pepper, American cucumber, squash, tomato and okra), two tea (linden and jasmine flower) and three spice samples (cardamom, galangal and saffron) were 1 μg/kg. Of the tested samples, 76% exceeded legal limits of total aflatoxin. The highest levels were determined in chestnut (232.9 μg/kg), nutmeg (206.1 μg/kg) and sumac (182.5 μg/kg). These findings confirm the existing knowledge that food should be regularly and effectively controlled.