Aflatoxin: African experts declare war, lament low awareness

Group Picture at the Country-Led Situation Analysis and Action Planning Validation and Stakeholder Workshop on Aflatoxin, held in Abuja

As an effort to ensuring food security across the country, experts in the agricultural sector have jointly declared war on "Aflatoxin", a silent killer and a threat to food security just as they have agreed to create awareness on dangers posed by the fungus to human and animal health and food production.

The position was declared during the Country-Led Situation Analysis and Action Planning Validation and Stakeholder Workshop, organized by the Partnership for Aflatoxin Control in Africa (PACA) in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (FMARD) supported by the African Union  (AU) which held in Abuja.

The Technical Adviser, PACA-AU Prof. Martins Epafras Kimanya, during an interview disclosed that the effect of aflatoxin on international trade, health and food security had called for the urgent mitigation of the problem in Nigeria. 

He said that due to the necessity of the need to secure our food system in the country, the PACA picked Nigeria late alongside Gambia, Malawi, Senegal, Tanzania and Uganda, as part of its five pilot countries in controlling the effect on food consumed by humans and animals, as it has elaborated a ten-year strategy (2013-2022). 

Prof. Kimanya added that aflatoxin is a silent killer and in that note the African Union (AU),the Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, PACA and ECOWAS, agreed to establish the African Information Management System (AfricaAIMS) among others, to mitigate the aflatoxin problem in Nigeria. 

He stressed that aflatoxin control would also be mainstreamed through PACA initiative in Comprehensive African Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) and National Agriculture and Food Security Investment Plans (NAFSIPs).

The PACA technical officer urged Nigerians to champion the cause of aflatoxin mitigation in order to create policies and an enabling environment that would allow evidence-based action plans to be implemented by various stakeholders, saying that aflatoxin contamination was the most pervasive food safety challenge in Africa and therefore required a concerted, coordinated and holistic approach to have a meaningful and sustained impact on mitigating the problem.

Prof. Kimanya said “Aflatoxins are natural compounds produced by the mould Aspergillus flavus and related species. They are highly toxic to humans and animals, causing liver disease and cancer. Chronic exposure to aflatoxins is also associated with stunting and immune system suppression. Aflatoxin-producing moulds affect grain and other food crops notably, maize and groundnuts. The toxin can be carried over along the food chain and contaminate animal source foods. Humans and animals get exposed to aflatoxins through ingestion of foods/feeds contaminated by the toxins’’

The Director, Cereals and Agric Development, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (FMARD) Mr. Opara George Obinna said that the role played by PACA is strategic and important to the country’s food security adding that if we want to diversify our economy our food system has to be safe for human and animal consumption.

He noted that we are all sitting on aflatoxin, and it had eaten into our value chain crops especially the exportable ones which has resulted to many not meeting market standard based on fungus infection, stressed it was mandatory and urgent that we think of more possible solutions to control the effects of the fungus on our food production.

He stressed that the Federal Government through the FMARD was dedicated to enforcing stringent regulations that would mitigate the effect posed across the country, starting from planting, to harvesting and storage.

Prof Olusegun Atanda, Fellow Trustee and past President of the Mycotoxicology Society of Nigeria said that there was a great need to start combating aflatoxin situation in the country, saying high postharvest losses were attributed to farmers’ produce being susceptible to fungus growth thereby leading to aflatoxin

He said that more regulations should be made to control aflatoxin in the country, with massive awareness of the farmers on the effects of the fungus to their produce urging that it was necessary to mainstream aflatoxin issues through enforcement by the national food safety bill cum national mitigation strategy and investment program with fund support.

  

Other participants also pleaded that the proposed action plan be further reviewed to enforce a purpose-driven project.

A panelist and discussant from the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO), Mr. Ahmed Matane said that 90% of our extension workers were not aware aflatoxin negative impact, and this has deterred farmers’ sensitization, adding that the food safety standard of the country needed to be upgraded to avert major health problems posed by the silent killer through effective act.

A deputy director, Grains Reserve, Mr. Nuhu Kilishi said it was not necessary to spend a huge fund on the control and detection of this menace without a major sensitization of its effect, adding prevention is better than cure.

The desk officer, maize value chain FMARD Dr. Muftau Adeleke also advised the country to take necessary step on the collection of the rejected crops, so as to avert illegal sales by farmers or consumption by the livestock which could also endanger human and animal health.