[Determination of aflatoxin B1 in dried figs by visual screening, thin-layer chromatography and ELISA]

Aflatoxin B1-contaminated fruits were sorted out from 250 kg dried figs (five Turkish and three Greek batches) by bright-greenish-yellow fluorescence under UV light. The aflatoxins of the fluorescent figs were extracted by simple soaking in methanol. Aflatoxin B1 was determined by thin-layer chromatography. Parallel to this, an extraction for the determination of aflatoxin B1 was developed by a competitive ELISA and the two methods were compared with each other. In a highly contaminated batch of Turkish figs, statistically there was one fig among 350 which had a high aflatoxin content (greater than 100 ng/g fig) and one fig amongst 140 fruits with an aflatoxin B1 content of greater than 10 ng B1/g fig.