Burkina stakeholder meeting. 23 April 2015

1. www.iita.orgA member of CGIAR consortium
Importance of
Aflatoxin
Summary of
Biocontrol Project in
Burkina Faso
Importance of
Aflatoxin
Summary of
Biocontrol Project in
Burkina Faso
Ranajit Bandyopadhyay
IITA, Ibadan, Nigeria

2. www.iita.org
• Highly toxic metabolite
produced by the ubiquitous
Aspergillus flavus fungus
• The fungus resides in soil
and crop debris, infects
crops and produces the
toxin in the field and in
stores
Aflatoxin Facts
• Contamination
possible without
visible signs of the
fungus
• Fungus carried
from field to store
Photo: Peter Cotty

3. www.iita.org
• Unlike most fungi, Aspergillus
flavus is favoured by hot dry
conditions.
• The optimum temperature for
growth is 37 C, but the fungus
readily grows between the
temperatures of 25-42 C, and
will grow at temperatures
from 12-48C.
• Toxin contamination more
when night temperatures are
high
• Drought stress predisposes
plants to aflatoxin
Disease Development & Weather
Source: www.aspergillusflavus.org

4. www.iita.org
Aflatoxin Contamination Occurs in
Two Phases
Phase I: Before Crop Maturity
 Developing crops become infected.
 Associated with crop damage (insect, bird, stress).
 Favored by high temperature (night) and dry conditions.
Phase II: After Crop Maturity
 Aflatoxin increases in mature crop.
 Seed is vulnerable until consumed.
 Rain on the mature crop increases contamination.
 Associated with high humidity in the field & store, insect
damage, and improper crop storage or transportation.

5. www.iita.orgA member of CGIAR consortium
Pre‐Harvest Problem
Aflatoxin
(ppb)ppb)
Peanut (n = 188) Maize (n = 241)
Distribution (% samples)
> 4 54 70
> 10 41 52
> 20 29 24
Descriptive statistics (ppb)
Minimum < LOD < LOD
Maximum 3487 838
Mean 111 33
LOD = Limit of Detection; States sampled: Nassarawa,
Katsina, Kaduna, Kano, Bauchi, Jigawa & Niger
Aflatoxin in Groundnut and Maize at Harvest, 2012, Nigeria
Increases in store

6. www.iita.orgA member of CGIAR consortium
Post‐Harvest Aflatoxin
Aflatoxin in Groundnut and Maize in Farmers’ Store in Burkina Faso
Crop Zone
B‐aflatoxin (ppb)
Mean Range
Groundnut
Sudan Savannah 46.0 0.0 – 925.0
Northern Guinea Savannah 11.3 0.0 – 41.0
Southern Guinea Savannah 12.3 1.0 – 21.0
Maize
Sudan Savannah 49.6 2.0 – 517.0
Northern Guinea Savannah 17.8 2.7 – 127.0
Southern Guinea Savannah 7.0 0.0 – 11.7

7. Prevalence of Aflatoxins
in Food & Feed
• Several African staple commodities affected
• High human exposure in Africa – mother to baby
• Levels and frequency of occurrence high
• Concern for food and feed processors, government
and emergency food reserve agencies, school‐
feeding
• Aflatoxins disproportionately impact the poor
• Highly toxic strains, conducive environmental
conditions, traditional farming methods and
improper grain drying and storage practices,
unregulated markets

8. International Institute of Tropical Agriculture – Institut international d’agriculture tropicale – www.iita.org

9. International Institute of Tropical Agriculture – Institut international d’agriculture tropicale – www.iita.org
Aflatoxin Contamination in West Africa
• Maize: 4,000 – Benin
• Peanut: 925 – Burkina
• Sorghum: 80 – Ghana
• Rice: 372 – Nigeria
• Millet: 200 – Nigeria
• Tiger nuts: 120 – Nigeria
Primary products
• Peanut paste: 3,278 – Ghana
• Peanut sauce: 943 – Ghana
• Leaf sauce: 775 – Gambia
• Maize dough: 313 – Ghana
• Kenkey: 524 – Ghana
• Cashew paste: 366 – Ghana
• Peanut oil: 500 – Nigeria
• Yam flour: 7,600 – Nigeria
• Local beer: 135 – Nigeria
• Infant food: 19* – Burkina
Food productsMTL = 10 - 20 ng/g

10. International Institute of Tropical Agriculture – Institut international d’agriculture tropicale – www.iita.org
Aflatoxin and Human Health
 Death
 Binds with DNA -- mutagenic
 Type I carcinogen
 Causes liver cancer – increasing incidence
 Aflatoxin interacts with HBV
• 30 times more potent in HBV+ people
• 5-60 times higher cancer risk
• 40% of liver cancer cases linked to aflatoxin
 Associated with stunting in children
 Associated with immune suppression
 Impede uptake and utilization of micronutrients in
human systems
 Associated with Kwashiorkor in children
 Contributes to 40% of DALYs

11. International Institute of Tropical Agriculture – Institut international d’agriculture tropicale – www.iita.org
Animal Health Impact of Aflatoxin
 Livestock and poultry losses
 liver damage including cancer
 recurrent infection due to
immune system suppression
 reduced growth rate
 losses in feed efficiency
 decreased milk and egg yield
 embryo toxicity (reduced
reproductivity)
 death (cattle, turkey, poultry,
swine..)

12. www.iita.org
Aflatoxin and Poultry (Broilers)
Aflatoxin
levels in
feeds in
Nigeria
Aflatoxin level (ppb) Samples (%)
<20 (safe) 38
>20 to 100 (up to 5x) 14
>100 to 500 (up to 25x) 41
>500 to 1,000 (up to 100x) 7
AF-free diet 500 ppb AF diet
AF-free
diet
500 ppb AF diet
~40% reduction in
live weight (8 weeks)

13. EC 2007
Aflatoxin and Trade
SOURCE: EU Rapid Alert System For Food and
Feed (RASFF, 2005)

14. www.iita.org
Trade Losses due to Aflatoxins
• Nigeria and Senegal major groundnut exporters
in 1960s. Compliance has economic incentives
• Senegal: US$ 4.1 million added capital
investment and 15% recurring cost would attract
30% price differential to oil cake.
• Export would increase from 25K tons to 210K
tons.
• Increased export volume and price differential
would annually add $281 million value to
groundnut export for the capital investment.
• For confectionary groundnut, adherence to Good
Management Practices would increase export
value by US$ 45 million annually.
• Best quality exported; poorer quality consumed
domestically. Peanut
Maize
Coffee
Cocoa
Groundnut Pyramids in
Nigeria during 1960s
Pyramids in Egypt?
World Bank; Mbaye (2004)

16. www.iita.orgA member of CGIAR consortium
Mycotoxin Projects in Burkina Faso
• 2007‐2010: Diffusion of cost‐effective
technologies for the control of mycotoxin
contamination for increased health and
income in Burkina Faso, Tanzania and
Mozambique
• 2010‐2014: Biological Control of Aflatoxins in
Maize for Enhanced Food Safety and Income
in Burkina Faso
Two projects – both funded by Austrian Development Cooperation

17. www.iita.orgA member of CGIAR consortium
Biocontrol Project Outputs
• Output 1: Aflatoxin biocontrol strains identified
for reduction of aflatoxins in maize and other
associated susceptible crops.
• Output 2: Efficacy and product data available for
pre‐registration of atoxigenic strains as
biopesticides.
• Output 3: Students and staff trained for
conducting aflatoxin research.
• Output 4: Infrastructure and technical capacity
developed for aflatoxin research.

18. www.iita.orgA member of CGIAR consortium
Atoxigenic Strain Identification
Collection/characterization Toxin assay
Field
efficacy
test
Lab
competition
assay
VCG/DNA characterization
cnx
nia-D
Unknown 2
+

19. www.iita.orgA member of CGIAR consortium
1. Strain Identification
• 3,660 Aspergillus isolates from
256 samples collected in three
agro‐ecological zones of Burkina
Faso.
• Four widely distributed and
adapted atoxigenic strains,
namely M109‐2, M110‐7, MO11‐
8 and GO18‐2 identified.
• Biocontrol product Aflasafe BF01
constituted with the four strains
mentioned above

20. Broadcast
@ 10 kg/ha 2‐3 weeks
before flowering
Sporulation on moist soil
Spores
Insects
Aflasafe in 2.5 & 5 kg bags
3‐20
days
Wind
Soil
colonization
30‐33 grains m‐2
How Does aflasafe Work?

21. www.iita.orgA member of CGIAR consortium
Crop Sample Treatment Fields
AF
mean
(ppb)*
Red
uction
(%)
Groun
dnut
Harvest
Treated 51 3.7
92
Control 51 44.0
Storage
Treated 49 15.0
86
Control 49 101.0
Maize
Harvest
Treated 17 1.7
82
Control 17 9.1
Storage
Treated 17 50.3
84
Control 17 319.0
*All means of aflasafe treated and control pairs
significantly different; Student’s t-test (P<0.05)
Efficacy trial sites
Crop sampling sites
2. Efficacy of Aflasafe BF01
2012

22. www.iita.orgA member of CGIAR consortium
3. Student/Staff Training
• An INERA staff (Mr. Touré Mahama)
was trained in principles and
methodologies followed in aflatoxin
biocontrol research at IITA.
• Spent three months each for two
years at IITA.
• MPhil student Mrs TIENDREBEOGO
Assiata spent four months at IFA‐
Tulln, Austria
• She worked on development of
DNA‐based assays to monitor
Aspergillus biocontrol strains in the
field.

23. www.iita.orgA member of CGIAR consortium
4. Infrastructure Development
• A lab renovated in INERA’s Farako
Ba research station
• Lab equipped with Laminar flow
hood, Autoclave, Coffee grinder,
Water‐jacket incubator, Digital
shaker, Neogen aflatoxin kits and
LFD reader, and automatic pipettes
• The renovation of the building and
the new equipment facilitated
further research activities after the
project ended

24. www.iita.orgA member of CGIAR consortium
Next Steps
• A highly effective biocontrol product available
• Disseminate Full registration of the product
necessary
• Developed in partnership with farmers to
demonstrate product efficacy
• Need for consultation with other stakeholders in
maize and groundnut value chains
• Explore mechanisms for scaling up of the product –
public, private, mixed
• Identify scaling up partners
• Plan scaling up implementation

25. www.iita.orgA member of CGIAR consortium
Aflasafe Manufacturing Facility
Large‐scale: capacity 5 tons/hour
Cooler
Roaster
Inoculum Production Lab
Big Weigher
Small Weigher
Sealer Sealer
Sterilised Grain Silos
50 tons each
Raw Grain Silo
100 tons
Finished
Product
Debearder
Fine
Cleaner
Deabearder & Fine Cleaner
Housing
Intake
Pit
Roaster & Cooler
housing
2 Labs

26. IITA
Tucson
USDA/ARS
IITA, USDA, & Doreo have Teamed up to Bring
Aflatoxin Prevention to Africa
Made Possible by Many National Partners in Ministries, Industry, and on the Farm
Nigeria
For more information about aflatoxin biocontrol for Africa, check out: www.aflasafe.com