Kitty Cardwell, the national program leader at the U.S. Department of Agriculture\u2019s National Institute of Food and Agriculture and member of the PMIL external review committee, was recently featured in a National Geographic article, “Aflatoxin, a Silent Threat to Africa\u2019s Food Supply.”<\/p>\n
Food supply issues aren\u2019t uncommon in Africa. Famines caused by drought, flood, or conflict are frequent. But there is another constant threat to the continent\u2019s food security that receives little public attention: Foodborne toxins known as aflatoxins.<\/em><\/p>\n Produced by fungus in the same way that penicillin is, aflatoxins can cause disease and are blamed for\u00a0liver cancer. That\u2019s pretty alarming since they largely affect food staples like corn and groundnuts. But there are scientists working on solutions.<\/em><\/p>\n The toxins are naturally occurring and exist at high levels in much of Africa\u2019s food supply. Some scientists\u00a0\u00a0estimate that up to one-third of Africa\u2019s food supply is infected with aflatoxins at levels higher than the United States deems safe.\u00a0The\u00a0Partnership for Aflatoxin Control in Africa<\/a>\u00a0(PACA) is working to assess the extent of the infection.<\/em><\/p>\n Aflatoxins likely affect more people in Africa than common diseases like malaria and tuberculosis. But because aflatoxins\u2019 effects are so diverse and incremental, it\u2019s not always easy to finger them as the cause of illness. Its symptoms include hemorrhaging, fluid retention, cirrhosis, and failure of the liver. And they are blamed for\u00a0hundreds of deaths worldwide each year<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s pretty scary because you can\u2019t smell or taste the toxin,\u201d says\u00a0Barbara Stinson<\/a>, the project director of PACA and senior partner at the\u00a0Meridian Institute<\/a>, which helps companies and governments develop problem-solving strategies. And you can\u2019t rely on sight, either. \u201cThe fuzzy, green fungus alone isn\u2019t a dead giveaway that the toxin is present.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n