On February 8, 2018, European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) released the document 10.2903 / j.efsa.2018.5175 which conducts the risk assessment on the effect on public health in case of a possible increase of the maximum limit for “aflatoxin total” from 4 to 10 μg/kg in peanuts and their processed products, intended for direct human consumption or used as an ingredient in foodstuffs.

The aflatoxin total (AFT) consists of aflatoxins B1, B2, G1 and G2, of which B1 is the most common. The analysis shows that aflatoxins are mainly detected in imported foods such as peanuts, nuts, dried fruits and rice, and the content level of aflatoxin can be reduced if using heating, baking, etc. Even for the peanut samples which are highly contaminated with aflatoxins, the content can also be reduced to 1 mcg/kg or less in the process of extracting edible oil. There is limited evidence of carcinogenicity of aflatoxin B1, G1 and G2, and insufficient evidence of carcinogenicity of G2, and the calculated cancer risk indicates that the increase of maximum level will increase the risk further by 1.6-1.8 times. For this reason, the assessment panel recommends that in assessing the effect on public health risks that may be increased, it is necessary to understand the pollution level of goods that are beyond the current limit and not destined for the EU in order to assess the limit.

For more details, please visit http://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/efsajournal/pub/5175.