Assessment of aflatoxin levels in whole and peeled ginger marketed in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

Aflatoxins are naturally occurring toxins, predominantly produced by the fungi Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus parasiticus. These toxins are often found in numerous agricultural and food products worldwide. The current study investigated the natural occurrence of total aflatoxins in dried split ginger purchased from different local markets in the Dar-Es-Salaam region, the eastern zone of Tanzania. Using a cross-sectional sampling design, a total of 50 ginger samples were analyzed in two preparations as a whole and peeled ginger based on Q+ Aflatoxin single-step lateral flow immuno-chromatographic assay. The results revealed that all ginger samples analyzed were positive for aflatoxins with levels ranging from 5.7–28.0 g/kg and 3.1–21.5 g/kg for whole and peeled ginger respectively. Forty (80%) and fifteen (30%) of the samples for whole and peeled ginger respectively were above the Tanzanian legally permissible limit of 10 g/kg. Interestingly, aflatoxins level of contamination in whole ginger were significantly higher than in peeled ginger (p<0.0001). This is the first report on the natural occurrence of aflatoxins in whole and peeled ginger samples from Tanzania. The findings of this study indicated that ginger peels are relatively prone to aflatoxin contamination.