Carry over effect of aflatoxin from broiler feed to broiler meat and organs in chicken raised in Nairobi City County, Kenya

Abstract

Background: Aflatoxin is a threat and a food safety concern particularly in developing countries due to the climatic conditions that favor the growth of the aflatoxin fungi. Consequently, this is a major risk to feed ingredients used in the manufacture of animal feed and subsequently a great risk to human consumers due to the detrimental effects of these toxins. Since there are no documented studies on carry over effect of aflatoxin in broilers in Kenya, a study to establish the carry over effect of aflatoxin in broiler chicken was carried out in Nairobi City County. Materials and Methods: The study employed a longitudinal study design where by broiler chicken were followed for a period of six weeks. The broilers were sampled from six farms in six sub counties within Nairobi City County hence, a total of 42 birds were sampled.The samples obtained were meat (muscle, liver and gizzard), feed and water and were analyzed using the LC-MS/MS technique to determine the Aflatoxin levels.The carry over effect in this study was determined statistically. STATA version 12 was used to analyze the data. Tukey Kramer post hoc test was used for comparison of means and statistical significance was determined at 5%. Results:There was a statistical significant difference (p<0.05) in the carry over ratio of aflatoxin per week. The highest carry over ratio of >10% was observed in the liver, followed by the gizzard and the least was in the muscle.The highest transfer ratio was observed in week 5 and 6 in the liver and in week 6 in the muscle. The carry over ratio in the muscle was below 1%. Conclusion:The study concludes that it is less safe to consume the liver and gizzard as the transfer is high however it is safer to consume the muscle as the transfer is low. There is need to constantly monitor aflatoxin levels in feed and feed ingredients hence prevent carry over into animal tissues consequently reducing risk to humans.