Multi-mycotoxin contamination of green tea infusion and dietary exposure assessment in Moroccan population

Green tea infusion is one of the most widely drunk beverages worldwide due to its health benefits associated with microelements, essential oils, and polyphenols, etc. Several studies have reported that green tea is subjected to contamination by various toxigenic fungi. Thus, this work aims to investigate the co-occurrence of 15 mycotoxins [four aflatoxins (AFB1, AFB2, AFG1, AFG2), ochratoxin A (OTA), beauvericin (BEA), four enniatins (ENA, ENA1, ENB, ENB1), zearalenone (ZEN), alternariol (AOH), tentoxin (TENT), T-2 and HT-2 toxins] in green tea samples available in Morocco by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry method. Analytical and consumption data were then used to assess the dietary exposure for the population. Out of 111 total green tea samples, 62 (56%) were contaminated by at least one mycotoxin. The most found mycotoxins in samples were AOH (40%), ZEN (35%), AFG1 (2%), AFB2 (2%), ENB (2%) and TENT (1%). The highest level was found for ZEN with 45.8 ng/g. There is no sample that exceeded the recommended levels set by European Pharmacopoeia for certain mycotoxins in plant material. Although multi-mycotoxin co-occurred in samples (33%), the probable estimated daily intake values show that the intake of mycotoxins through the consumption of green tea does not represent a risk for the population.