"aflasafe: a case study for aflatoxin reduction in crops "

www.iita.orgA member of CGIAR consortium

Aflasafe: A case study for

aflatoxin reduction in crops

Ranajit Bandyopadhyay

IITA, Ibadan, Nigeria

On behalf of the Aflasafe TeamAgriculture for Nutrition & Health

FAO Symposium: The role of agricultural biotechnologies in sustainable food systems and nutrition

Rome, 15 – 17 February 2016

P

• Highly toxic metabolite produced by the ubiquitous Aspergillus flavus fungus

• The fungus resides in soil and crop debris, infects crops and produces the toxin in the field and in stores

• Potent at extremely low doses• Death, liver cancer, immune-

suppression, stunted growth• Lowers animal productivity• Negatively impacts trade

• Contaminates food, feed and milk

• Climate change increasing incidence and severity of aflatoxins

Aflatoxin Facts

Photo: Peter Cotty


Pre-Harvest Problem

Aflatoxin (ppb) Maize (n = 241) Peanut (n = 188)

> 4 70 54> 10 52 41> 20 24 29

Samples (%) with AflatoxinAt harvest -- Nigeria

Kenya data: CDC & Ministry of Health, 2004

Aflatoxin (ppb) Maize (n = 342)

> 20 53> 100 34

> 1000 7

In Farmers’ Store -- Kenya

Increases after

HarvestAgriculture for Nutrition & Health

Planting Harvest Consumption

Drought-t

oleran

t & ad

apted

varie

ties

Farm

yard M

anure

Liming

Mulching

Tied rid

ges

Aflasafe

Drying

Sorti

ng & gr

ading

Storag

e

Blanch

ingAmmoniati

on

Testi

ng

Multiple practices to Manage Aflatoxins

Clay

www.iita.org

• IITA• USDA• AATF• BMGF/USAID• Doreo Partners• National institutions

Strong Partnership

www.iita.orgA member of CGIAR consortium Agriculture for Nutrition & Health


Almost one million acres

of several crops treated annually in

the US with 2 EPA-

Approved products ! Production Room

Atoxigenic Strain Manufacturing FacilityArizona Cotton Research & Protection Council

(Funded and Governed by the Farmers of Arizona), Phoenix, Arizona

Biocontrol Works!

Agriculture for Nutrition & Health


Biocontrol Works!


It Works in Africa Too


Biocontrol Principles In nature, some strains produce a lot

(toxigenic), and others no aflatoxin (atoxigenic) (Donner, Soil Biol Biochem 2009)

Atoxigenic strains are already present on the crop (Atehnkeng et al., IJFM, 2008)

Increase the frequency of atoxigenic strains to competitively displace toxigenic strains (Cotty & Bayman, Phytopath 1993) to reduce aflatoxin contamination

Atoxigenic strains can be applied without increasing infection and without increasing the overall quantity of A. flavus on the crop or in the environment (Cotty, Phytopath 1994; Atehnkeng et al., Biological Control 2014)

0123456789

0 20 40 60 80 100

r = 0.71, P = 0.0001

Afla

toxi

n B

1 (ng

/g X

10,

000)

Isolates (%) in Applied Atoxigenic Strain

Strains move from field to stores

Multiple year & crop carry-over effect (Jaime & Cotty, Phytopath 2006)

We use only native strains



Strain Selection CriteriaIn the laboratory (~5,000 strains):• Does not produce aflatoxin• VCG/SSR group with

Wide geographic distributionNo toxigenic member

• Defective in >2 aflatoxin & CPA genes

• Outcompetes toxigenic strains

8-12 native strains selected for field tests


After field application:• Superior capacity to colonize,

multiply and survive in soil• Superior frequency of isolation

from grains • Superior capacity to reduce

aflatoxin

4 native strains formulated into

the final product

Broadcast @ 10 kg/ha 2-3 weeks before flowering

Sporulation on moist soil

Spores

Insects

Aflasafe in 2.5 & 5 kg bags

3-20 days

Wind

Soilcolonization

30-33 grains m-2

How Does aflasafe Work?


Nigeria: Efficacy on Maize

2009 2010 2011 20120

20

40

60

80

100

120372

Aflasafe™Control

2009 2010 2011 20120

100

200

300

400

500

60082 94 83 86 82 93 89 90

51 14 199 38 51 14 166 38Fields (#)

Less (%)

At Harvest After Storage

*All means of aflasafe and control pairs significantly different; Student’s t-test (P<0.05)

*

Aflat

oxin

(ppb

)


Area Sample TreatmentMean

Aflatox (ppb)

Reduct. (%)

Mean Aflatox (ppb)

Reduct. (%)

Mean Aflatox (ppb)

Reduct. (%)

DiourbelHarvest

Treated 1.993

6.687

3.782

Control 29.7 50.1 20.3

StorageTreated 4.4

862.1

916.9

81Control 31.3 22.1 35.5

NioroHarvest

Treated 4.475

5.676

5.490

Control 17.6 23.1 55.7

StorageTreated 3.5

952.8

9411.5

84Control 52.1 46.7 72.5

*All means of aflasafe treated and control pairs significantly different; Student’s t-test (P<0.05)n = number of famers’ fields

Senegal: Efficacy of aflasafe SN01

2010 (n=40) 2011 (n=34) 2012 (n=71)



Kenya: Efficacy of aflasafe KE01™

Area (fields) Control Treated Reduction (%)

Hola (n = 20) 885 20 98Bura (n = 16) 105 7 93Makueni (n = 15) 85 1 99

Aflatoxin (ppb)

*All means of aflasafe treated and control pairs significantly different; Student’s t-test (P<0.05)

Hola Bura Makueni0

102030405060708090

100

38

20

0

88

60

33

TreatedControl

Fields (%) above 10 ppb in 3 areas

Fiel

ds (%

)

Deadly (3,700 ppb & 2,270 ppb)

533 ppb

Hola



Aflasafe Development in Africa

Senegal

Burkina Faso Ghana

Nigeria

Kenya

Tanzania

Mozambique

Zambia

Rwanda

Malawi

Burundi

Uganda

The Gambia

Strain development in

progress

Products under testing in

farmers’ fields

Product ready for registration

Product registered


Current emphasis

changed from country-specific

strain and products to

regional strains and regional

products


Challenges

• Aflatoxin is a hidden problem• Chemical analysis required• Awareness is low• Long incubation for expression of

liver cancer• Regulations either non-existent or

poorly enforced• Market does not usually discriminate• Demonstration of product value• Lack of biopesticide manufacturers

The value of a technology on the shelf is as much as the cost of the space it occupies on the shelf.

Must translate knowledge into usable products and practices to benefit people

But……



This Manufacturing Facility in IITA-Ibadan can supply aflasafe to treat 2

million ha annually

Large-scale: capacity 5 tons/hourProduct cost: $12 to $18.75/ha


Modular Manufacturing FacilityKenya

Capacity: 7 tons/dayCost: ~US$300 – 700KPurpose: IntroductionProduct cost: 12 – 15/haLabour intensive

Senegal

Poultry Feeding Study

$3,200 net profit from 10,000 birds in 8 weeks

www.iita.orgMycored Europe, 28 May, 2013A member of CGIAR consortium

Aflasafe maize feed Toxic maize feedAgriculture for Nutrition & Health

Innovation Platform• Platform meetings with

leadership and members of Poultry Association of Nigeria, feed manufacturers, maize aggregators, aflasafe farmers, vet professionals and regulators

• Poultry farmers to buy all aflasafe maize at a negotiated premium

• Agriculture ministry to fund NAFDAC to set up aflatoxin testing facilities in each state

www.iita.orgA member of CGIAR consortium Agriculture for Nutrition & Health

www.iita.org


Integrated approach to manage aflatoxins

Aggregation

Aflasafe

Inputs & training to improve productivity

Farmer groups/ value chain/Finance

Training for pre/postharvest

afla management

Awareness and sensitizationsPolicy and advocacy

Market linkages

Aflatoxin testing



Parameters 2013/2014 2014/2015

Number of implementers 4 9Total Aflasafe purchased (tons) 24 58.2Number of farmers 1,015 3,271Treated area (ha) 1,457 4,998Maize aggregated for sale (tons) 2,031 7,220Samples with <4 ppb AF (%) 99.0% 93%Samples with <10 ppb AF (%) 99.5% 96%samples with < 20 ppb AF (%) 99.5% 98%Return on Investment (ROI) 210% 489%Average sale price over market rate 13% 17%Aflasafe maize kept for family 46% 20.3%

Aflasafe benefits Smallholder farmers

Smallholder farmers have safer crops, improved income and better health

Grain lots meet international standards

Higher income

Better health

www.iita.org

• Managed by the National Irrigation Board (NIB)

• Highly productive area but aflatoxin-prone

• Maize frequently rejected as >50% strains in soil are highly toxic

Maize grown under center pivot in Galana-Kulaku, which is a part of 1 million acre Jubilee Food Security project of the Kenyan Govt.

• 238 tons aflasafe ordered (8.1 tons airlifted for emergency treatment) from IITA in Nigeria

• The entire crop of 200 ha treated with aflasafe

• Harvested grains had <4 ppb aflatoxins (meets strict European limit) in spite of delayed harvest

Aflasafe KE01 in the Aflasafe factory in IITA-Nigeria ready for shipment to Kenya

Maize crop being treated with Aflasafe KE01 in Galana

Aflasafe helps Kenya food security project


Scaling-Up and Models• Nigeria: AgResults farmers to

produce 260,000 tons of Aflasafe maize; Public-private partnership model

• Senegal: Area-wide treatment in 2013 and 2014 with 16 tons; 20 tons use projected in 2015; private sector led model

• Kenya: Government buy-in; about 230 tons procured; excellent support; public model

• Africa-wide: >500K ha by 2018• Critical role of PACA and RECs


Senegal

Kenya


Current and future biocontrol efforts

• Full registration, licensing and stewardship of product

• Create a sustainable system (commercialization/public good) where small holder farmers have access to Aflasafe and are incentivized to utilize Aflasafe to control aflatoxin levels

• Strategy development and implementation for commercialization (manufacturing, marketing and distribution)

• Advocacy, awareness, demonstration of product value

• Training and technical back-stopping• Develop second generation product• Develop regional strains


• Aflatoxins in food and feed pervasive in Africa

• Contamination starts in the field• Biological control with other

practices can dramatically reduce aflatoxin contamination and improve food safety and security

• Efforts underway to pilot commercialization of aflatoxin biocontrol and develop regional strains

• The pilots need to be up-scaled and efforts to improve efficacy needs a fillip for wide-spread impact on health and trade in Africa

Summary

Made Possible by Many National Partners in Ministries, Industry, and on the Farm

Nigeria

For more information about aflatoxin biocontrol for Africa, check out: www.aflasafe.com

IITA

TucsonUSDA/ARS

IITA, USDA, & Doreo have Teamed up to Bring Aflatoxin Prevention to Africa

http://www.entwicklung.at/en/

"aflasafe: a case study for aflatoxin reduction in crops "

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