The Contamination of Kenyan Lager Beers with Fusarium Mycotoxins
Samuel K. Mbugua 1,3 and J.K. Gathumbi 2
1 Department of Food Technology and Nutrition, Faculty of Agriculture
2 Department of Veterinary Pathology, Microbiology and Parasitology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Nairobi, P.O. Box 29053 Nairobi, Kenya.
3 Corresponding author. E-mail: smfoodke@wananchi.com
J. Inst. Brew. 110(3), 227-229, 2004 | VIEW ARTICLE
ABSTRACT
Seventy five samples of two popular lager beers,
namely Pilsner and Tusker were randomly collected
from the city of Nairobi and the surrounding satellite
towns in Kenya. The samples were analyzed for the
presence of 4 mycotoxins, namely, deoxynivalenol
(DON), fumonisin B1
(FB1 ), zearalenone (ZEA), and aflatoxin
B1 (AFB1 ), by the competitive
enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) technique.
The incidences of DON and ZEA were 100% in both
brands, while for FB1 the incidence was 72%, with
incidences in Tusker (76.9%) being significantly
higher than in Pilsner (66.7%) (p = 0.00). The mean
values for contamination were 3.29 and 3.57 ng/mL
for DON, 0.28 and 0.32 ng/mL for FB1 and 7.84 and
8.50 pg/ml for ZEA in Tusker and Pilsner brands
respectively. A positive occurrence association
was found between DON and FB1 and DON and ZEA, an
indication of their common source from Fusarium
sp. The results suggest low levels and safe exposure
to consumers of Kenyan lager beers with Fusarium
mycotoxins.
Key words:
Aflatoxins, Fusarium mycotoxins, Kenyan lager
beer
Publication no. G-2004-0816-235 ©2004 The Institute & Guild of Brewing