| Abstract: | One hundred and forty-six samples of animal feed (barley, n = 60; wheat bran, n = 22; wheat dry pulp, n = 29; and canola meal, n = 35) were collected in 2011 from Mashhad (Khorasan, Iran). Aflatoxins (AFs) were determined in these samples after immunoaffinity column clean-up by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with fluorescence detection. Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) contamination was found in 28 samples: in five of the barley samples (8.3%) at a mean level of 0.48 µg·kg?1, in two wheat bran samples (9.0%) at a mean level of 0.88 µg·kg?1, in 10 wheat dry pulp samples (34.5%) at a mean level of 0.30 µg·kg?1 and in 11 canola meal samples (31.4%) at a mean level of 0.92 µg·kg?1. AFB1 levels were below the maximum levels of Iran regulations (5 µg·kg?1) and the EU maximum limit (5 µg·kg?1). |
