<i>Aspergillus flavus</i> infection and aflatoxin contamination in peanuts stored at wholesale and retail levels in Bandung, Bogor and Jakarta (West Java, Indonesia)

Abstract

The objective of the study was to obtain information on the percentage of kernels infected by Aspergillus flavus and aflatoxin contents in peanuts stored at wholesale and retail levels (traditional market and supermarket) in three cities (Bandung, Bogor and Jakarta). The moisture content of the kernels were also investigated. The three cities were selected because they are different in terms of their elevations and rainfalls. A total of 105, 101, 87, 99, 104 and 98 peanut kernels were collected in March, June, September, December 2005; in March and June 2006, respectively. The moisture content of peanut kernels either collected at wholesaler or retailer in the three cities (Bandung, Bogor and Jakarta) fluctuated during sampling (between 6 – 8%). The moisture content of kernels either at the wholesaler or retailer in Bogor had the same pattern with those in Jakarta, while those in Bandung had different patterns. The moisture content of kernels either at wholesale or retail levels in the three cities were relatively similar, although the relative humidites and temperatures of the storages at wholesale and retail levels in Bandung were relatively lower than those in Bogor and Jakarta. The percentage of kernels infected by A. flavus in peanuts collected from wholesaler had the same pattern with those collected from retailer. The highest percentage of kernels infected by A. flavus either collected from wholesaler or retailer was in June 2005, while the lowest was in September 2005. The median and the highest range of percentage of kernels infected by A. flavus were in peanuts collected from Bandung, while the lowest were those collected from Bogor. The median and the range of percentage of kernels infected by A. flavus collected from wholesaler were higher than those collected from retailer. The median of aflatoxin B₁ content in peanut kernels either collected from wholesaler or retailer during sampling were relatively similar (< 20 ppb), nevertheless their broadest range was recorded in June 2005. They were correlated with the percentage of kernels infected by A. flavus. The highest median (± 20% of 204 samples) and the broadest range (10 – 60%) of frequency of samples contaminated with aflatoxin B1 > 15 ppb were in samples collected from Bandung, followed by samples from Jakarta (the median ± 20% of 181 samples, the range 10 – 40%), and samples collected from Bogor (the median ± 15% of 180 samples, the range 10 – 40%). The frequency of peanut samples contaminated with aflatoxin B₁ > 15 ppb collected from retailer was higher (the median 26% of 390 samples) than those collected from wholesaler (the median 18% of 175 samples), although the median and the range of percentage of kernels infected by A. flavus collected from wholesaler were higher than those collected from retailer.

Keywords: Aspergillus flavus, Aflatoxin, Peanuts, Storage, Wholesale and retail levels.