Incidence and Levels of Aflatoxin M<sub>1</sub> in Artisanal and Manufactured Cheese in Pernambuco State, Brazil
Isabela Maria de Moura Silva,
Adriano Gomes da Cruz,
Sher Ali,
Lucas Gabriel Dionisio Freire,
Luzianna Macedo Fonseca,
Roice Eliana Rosim,
Carlos Humberto Corassin,
Rodrigo Barbosa Acioli de Oliveira,
Carlos Augusto Fernandes de Oliveira
Affiliations
Isabela Maria de Moura Silva
Department of Consumer Science, Post-graduate program in Food Science and Technology, Federal Rural University of Pernambuco (UFRPE), Pernambuco 52171-900, PE, Brazil
Adriano Gomes da Cruz
Department of Foods, Federal Institute of Education, Science and Technology of Rio de Janeiro (IFRJ), Rio de Janeiro 20270-021, RJ, Brazil
Sher Ali
Department of Food Engineering, Faculty of Animal Science and Food Engineering (FZEA), University of São Paulo (USP), Pirassununga 13635-900, SP, Brazil
Lucas Gabriel Dionisio Freire
Department of Food Engineering, Faculty of Animal Science and Food Engineering (FZEA), University of São Paulo (USP), Pirassununga 13635-900, SP, Brazil
Luzianna Macedo Fonseca
Department of Animal Husbandry, Luiz de Quiroz Higher School of Agriculture (ESALQ), University of São Paulo (USP), Piracicaba 13418-900, SP, Brazil
Roice Eliana Rosim
Department of Food Engineering, Faculty of Animal Science and Food Engineering (FZEA), University of São Paulo (USP), Pirassununga 13635-900, SP, Brazil
Carlos Humberto Corassin
Department of Food Engineering, Faculty of Animal Science and Food Engineering (FZEA), University of São Paulo (USP), Pirassununga 13635-900, SP, Brazil
Rodrigo Barbosa Acioli de Oliveira
Department of Consumer Science, Post-graduate program in Food Science and Technology, Federal Rural University of Pernambuco (UFRPE), Pernambuco 52171-900, PE, Brazil
Carlos Augusto Fernandes de Oliveira
Department of Food Engineering, Faculty of Animal Science and Food Engineering (FZEA), University of São Paulo (USP), Pirassununga 13635-900, SP, Brazil
Cheese is one of the most susceptible dairy foods to accumulating aflatoxins due to their high affinity to caseins. The consumption of cheese contaminated with high levels of aflatoxin M1 (AFM1) can be highly harmful to humans. The present work, based on high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), highlights the frequency and levels of AFM1 in coalho and mozzarella cheese samples (n = 28) from the main cheese-processing plants in Araripe Sertão and Agreste in the state of Pernambuco, Brazil. Of the evaluated cheeses, 14 samples were artisanal cheeses and the remaining 14 were industrial (manufactured) cheeses. All samples (100%) had detectable levels of AFM1, with concentrations ranging from 0.026 to 0.132 µg/kg. Higher levels (p 1 were observed in artisanal mozzarella cheeses, but none of the cheese samples exceed the maximum permissible limits (MPLs) of 2.5 µg/kg established for AFM1 in cheese in Brazil and 0.25 µg/kg in the European countries by the European Union (EU). The high incidence of low levels of AFM1 found in the evaluated cheeses underscores the need for stringent control measures to prevent this mycotoxin in milk used for cheese production in the study area, with the aim of protecting public health and reducing significant economic losses for producers.
