A survey on the occurrence of aflatoxin M1 in raw milk produced in Adana province of Turkey

During 2012, a total of 176 samples of raw milk obtained from dairy plants of Adana province of Turkey were analysed for the presence of aflatoxin M1 (AFM1). Aflatoxin M1 analysis was carried out by centrifugation, liquid–liquid extraction, immunoaffinity column clean-up and high performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection (HPLC-FD). The limits of detection (LOD) and quantification (LOQ) of the analytical method were 0.021 μg kg−1 and 0.025 μg kg−1. Accuracy of the method obtained from bias ranged from 2.94 to 8.70. Aflatoxin M1 was detected in 53 out of 176 samples analysed (30.1%). The ranges for positive samples were 0.042–0.552, 0.033–1.01, 0.047–0.150 and 0.025–0.102 μg kg−1 in autumn, winter, spring and summer seasons, respectively. Thirty samples of raw milk (17%) were above the legal limits of Turkey and EU regulations.