A note on the screening of dried shrimps, shrimp paste and raw groundnut kernels for aflatoxin‐producing Aspergillus flavus

Abstract

All of 33 samples of dried shrimps, shrimp paste, peanut butter and raw groundnut kernels were contaminated with fungi. Aspergillus and Penicullium spp. were the predominant types in dried shrimps and raw groundnut kernels, but no Aspergillus spp. were present in peanut butter or shrimp paste samples. Among 81 Aspergillus isolates obtained from dried shrimps and raw groundnut kernels, 10 were A. flavus/A. parasiticus, of which 5 were potential aflatoxin-producing A. flavus strains. No aflatoxins were detected in the food samples although some were visibly moldy and some had high mold counts. The occurrence of aflatoxin-producing strains of A. flavus in dried shrimps and raw groundnut kernels warrants further investigation of these foods and their products as potentially significant sources of aflatoxins.