Elimination of aflatoxin M1 from milk: Current status, and potential outline of applicable mitigation procedures

Background

One of the most carcinogenic compounds found in milk is aflatoxin M₁ (AFM₁), which is formed in lactating mammals after the ingestion of feeds that have been contaminated with aflatoxin B₁ and then excreted into milk. As such, AFM₁'s concentration is limited at the both the national and international levels by national legislation or internationally-adopted Codex Alimentarius standards, respectively. Climatic conditions, the absence of food safety standards, or insufficient capacity for official controls have led to one-third of humankind being chronically exposed to AFM₁, especially in developing countries. Despite being frequently found in milk-based products and the many attempts by researchers to eliminate AFM₁ during milk processing, there is no removal procedure applicable in the dairy sector.

Scope and approach

This article retrieves and summarises the latest scientific and patent information on AFM₁ elimination procedures from milk.

Key findings and conclusions

Various procedures to eliminate AFM₁ from milk - based on chemical, physical, biological, and physicochemical principles - are currently being developed at the laboratory level. Due to the legislative prohibition on the addition of chemical reactants capable of destroying AFM₁ in the milk matrix, the technological and safety barriers associated with physical procedures, and the inaccessibility of officially approved enzymes capable of decomposing AFM₁ during biological procedures, it seems that physicochemical procedures could be of primary importance in the AFM₁ mitigation strategy. The suitability of physicochemical procedures also confirms the SCUFEERS concept, which is a set of criteria such as Safety, Capacity, Universality, Finance, Ecology, Efficiency, Rapidity, and Selectivity that enables the identification of the most promising procedures for dairy.