Ten years after “aflatoxins crisis” in Serbia: where are we now?

Abstract

Ten years ago, in late 2012, the public in the Republic of Serbia was informed through different media about aflatoxins (AFS). The first information was related to the presence of AFS in maize, while soon after that contamination of milk with aflatoxin M1 (AFM1) additionally increased confusion among producers and consumers. Public concern grew rapidly following opposing information in various media. On the other hand, scientists agreed that the Republic of Serbia was faced at the time with a big challenge due to the appearance of one of the most toxic natural contaminants in the food chain, AFS. They highlighted extreme drought conditions, recorded during the summer months in 2012, as the factor with the strongest influence on the high prevalence of AFS in maize, and consequently, contamination of maize-derived products, milk, and dairy products. During that period, AFS’s appearance attracted the attention of the public and politicians, and Serbia was faced with an “AFS crisis” followed by a protest of agricultural workers, appointment of a new Minister of Agriculture, several changes in regulations related to the maximum level of AFM1 and aflatoxin B1, confusion between consumers, and decrease in the purchase of milk and dairy products. Furthermore, the “AFS crisis” resulted in a significant economic loss (about a hundred million dollars), as Serbia is a leader in maize production, and among the top ten maize exporting countries in the world. Unfortunately, the weather conditions marked by increasing temperatures and lack of precipitation were dominant during the maize growing seasons in Serbia that followed. AFS contamination of maize and consequently of milk was again detected in 2013, 2015, 2017, and 2021. The presence of AFS in Serbia, in five of the ten most recent years, represents great concern regarding human exposure to AFS, due to the fact that milk and maize are one of the main foodstuffs in the human diet in Serbia, especially in children. Climate change predictions for this part of Europe indicate that the warming trend, favourable for Aspergillus species and AFS synthesis will continue in the future. Therefore, there is a great need for Serbia to enhance its control strategy, which should be based on continuous monitoring, increasing investments, as well as multidisciplinary integration and education of all participants in the food chain, with the main aim of minimizing the presence of AFS in the food chain.