Sustainable farm-to-fork multi-barrier strategies for aflatoxin management in food systems

Aflatoxin contamination is a persistent global food safety issue, especially in resource-limited regions, threatening food security, public health, agricultural productivity, and sustainable food systems. Because of its complexity, complete elimination is not feasible, so integrated strategies across the food chain are required. This review synthesized evidence on aflatoxin prevention and mitigation and followed the Scale for the Assessment of Narrative Review Articles (SANRA). Literature was retrieved from PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar. The findings were synthesized qualitatively. This review indicates that integrated pre-harvest strategies have reported aflatoxin reductions of approximately 51–99% across individual studies. These are not pooled estimates and are not directly comparable because of differences in experimental conditions, commodities, contamination levels, analytical methods, and study settings. Post-harvest interventions achieve 30–94% reductions, while advanced sorting technologies remove up to 99% of contaminated kernels. Biological detoxification methods reduce aflatoxin levels by 45–99%, whereas enzymatic systems achieve up to 95% degradation. Chemical methods reduce contamination by 20–100%, and physical treatments achieve 15–90% reduction depending on treatment conditions. Sustainable aflatoxin management requires a multi-barrier approach integrating agronomic practices, biocontrol, proper storage, and detoxification across the food chain. This integration can improve food safety and security, reduce post-harvest losses, and promote sustainable agriculture. It can also contribute to Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 2 (Zero Hunger), SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-being), SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure), SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production), SDG 13 (Climate Action), and SDG 15 (Life on Land), while protecting vulnerable populations.