The incidence of Aflatoxin B1 contamination of plant products in Iran: A systematic review

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Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) is a Group 1 carcinogen produced by Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus parasiticus . This systematic review aimed to determine the incidence and concentration of AFB1 in plant products in Iran. A comprehensive search was conducted in Web of Science, Embase, Scopus, and PubMed from January 1, 2000, to May 18, 2024. Of 559 initially identified records, 61 studies met the inclusion criteria after screening and quality assessment. The main commodities examined were pistachios (n=11 studies), rice (n=10), wheat flour (n=6), maize (n=4), and spices (n=1). AFB1 concentrations varied widely across commodities: pistachios ranged from 0 to 431,543 µg/kg, rice from 0.17 to 251.37 µg/kg (excluding TLC-based cultivar studies), and wheat flour from 0.01 to 7.34 µg/kg. Across all studies, up to 47–60% of pistachio samples and 30–70% of maize samples exceeded the Iranian national standard and EU limits. The highest contamination levels were consistently observed in pistachios from Kerman and Rafsanjan provinces. These findings indicate a pressing need for region-specific monitoring and intervention strategies in Iran.