KALRO, KEBS raise alarm over dangerous aflatoxin levels in Kenyan grains

KENYA – Kenyan food safety agencies have raised concern after tests found dangerously high levels of aflatoxins in cereals sold in local markets, prompting renewed calls for stronger food safety controls and wider access to testing services.

Data from the Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization (KALRO) showed that some grain samples contained up to 500 parts per billion (ppb) of aflatoxins. This figure is 50 times higher than Kenya’s legal limit of 10 ppb.

Speaking during a World Food Safety Day event, KALRO Director General Dr Patrick Ketiem said food safety standards leave no room for compromise.

“Safety testing costs are keeping ordinary farmers in the dark, and if we want safer food, testing services must become cheaper and easier to reach,” he said.

Aflatoxins are toxic substances produced by fungi that grow on crops such as maize, sorghum, millet and groundnuts when farmers store them under poor conditions. Long-term exposure can cause liver cancer, weaken the immune system and contribute to birth defects and developmental problems in children.

Experts link the contamination problem to poor post-harvest handling, inadequate drying and unsuitable storage conditions that allow fungi to grow.

Following the latest findings, the Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS) has stepped up inspections across the market. According to KEBS Quality Assurance Director Geoffrey Muriira, the agency has strengthened its inspection processes to ensure cereals sold to consumers meet safety requirements.

The latest warning comes almost a year after the Kenyan government launched a five-year national programme to eliminate aflatoxins from the country’s food systems. The initiative, supported by the Danish International Development Agency (DANIDA), brings together public and private sector players to improve surveillance, testing and management of aflatoxin risks.

During the programme’s launch in June 2025, KEBS Managing Director Esther Ngari stressed the need to monitor both formal and informal markets.

“We are keen to ensure that rejected or substandard grains do not spill into informal markets or reach our schools. Every Kenyan deserves food that is both safe and of high quality,” she said.

Research cited during the launch showed that Kenya recorded aflatoxin levels as high as 58,000 micrograms per kilogram in maize between 1960 and 2020, far above the regulatory limit of 10 micrograms per kilogram.

The review also linked aflatoxins to at least 500 illnesses and 200 deaths, highlighting the scale of the country’s long-running food safety challenge.

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