Professor Groopman explains that Aflatoxin is produced by a variety of molds and these molds contaminate the grains either outside or they can actually penetrate inside the grains.

John Groopman, Ph.D. is the Chair of the Department of Environmental Health Sciences at John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. His research focuses on the molecular causes and effects of environmental factors that may lead to the development of cancers. This research has led to the development of biomarkers used in studies of high-risk aflatoxin-hepatitis B populations specifically in China. “Aflatoxin is produced by a variety of molds and these molds contaminate the grains either outside or they can actually penetrate inside the grains. And then aflatoxin itself is a metabolite, it's actually a product that the mold produces that is then excreted out and contaminates the grain. The toxicity of aflatoxin and its potency as a carcinogen was recognized very early in the 1960s and as a consequence the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the U.S. Department of Agriculture put in place regulations very early on in the studies of this compound to regulate the levels of aflatoxin that would be permitted in the food supply. It was further recognized that just the physical examination of a corn grain product, or peanut butter, or peanut product was inadequate to determine whether aflatoxin was present. And only a specific chemical analysis of the grain or grain product could be performed in order to determine if aflatoxin was really there.”

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