Occurrence of aflatoxins and ochratoxin A in rice samples from six provinces in China

In this study, a total of 370 rice samples collected from six provinces in China were surveyed for the presence of aflatoxins (AFs) and ochratoxin A (OTA) using dispersive liquid–liquid microextraction coupled to liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection. The results obtained in this survey showed that 63.5% (235/370) and 4.9% (18/370) of rice samples contained detectable amounts of AFs and OTA, respectively. The average levels of AFB1, total AFs and OTA in positive samples were 0.60, 0.65 and 0.85 μg/kg, respectively. AFB1 and AFB2 were present in samples from all six provinces and could be quantified in 87 and 32 samples, respectively. OTA was present in samples from four provinces and could be quantified in 6 samples. The percentages of rice samples with AFB1 and OTA levels above the EU limit were 1.4% (5/370) and 0.3% (1/370), respectively. The results show that the levels of the mycotoxins in rice are below regulatory limits and the rice commodities are generally safe. It also indicates the need to establish a continuous monitoring program to prevent and manage the occurrence of these contaminants.