Aflatoxin M-1 in UHT milk consumed in Turkey and first assessment of its bioaccessibility using an in vitro digestion model

Contamination of milk and dairy products with aflatoxin M-1 (AFM(1)) continues to receive increased attention because of its potential health hazard to humans. The first aim of this study was to know the occurrence and levels of AFM(1) in whole UHT milk from main processors in Turkey in order to make a preliminary exposure assessment. A total of 40 milk samples were analysed for AFM(1) using high performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection (HPLC-FD) after immunoaffinity column clean-up. Aflatoxin M1 was detected in 20% of samples at levels ranging from <0.004 to 0.076 mu g l(-1). Only two samples contained AFM(1) above the EU limit of 0.05 mu g l(-1)