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Review
. 2022 Jun 24;11(13):1874.
doi: 10.3390/foods11131874.

Peanut Butter Food Safety Concerns-Prevalence, Mitigation and Control of Salmonella spp., and Aflatoxins in Peanut Butter

Tapiwa Reward Sithole  1 , Yu-Xiang Ma  1 , Zhao Qin  1 , Xue-De Wang  1 , Hua-Min Liu  1
Affiliations
Review

Peanut Butter Food Safety Concerns-Prevalence, Mitigation and Control of Salmonella spp., and Aflatoxins in Peanut Butter

Tapiwa Reward Sithole et al. Foods. .

Abstract

Peanut butter has a very large and continuously increasing global market. The food safety risks associated with its consumption are also likely to have impacts on a correspondingly large global population. In terms of prevalence and potential magnitude of impact, contamination by Salmonella spp., and aflatoxins, are the major food safety risks associated with peanut butter consumption. The inherent nature of the Salmonella spp., coupled with the unique chemical composition and structure of peanut butter, present serious technical challenges when inactivating Salmonella spp. in contaminated peanut butter. Thermal treatment, microwave, radiofrequency, irradiation, and high-pressure processing all are of limited efficacy in inactivating Salmonella spp. in contaminated peanut butter. The removal of aflatoxins in contaminated peanut butter is equally problematic and for all practical purposes almost impossible at the moment. Adopting good manufacturing hygiene practices from farm to table and avoiding the processing of contaminated peanuts are probably some of the few practically viable strategies for minimising these peanut butter food safety risks. The purpose of this review is to highlight the nature of food safety risks associated with peanut butter and to discuss the effectiveness of the initiatives that are aimed at minimising these risks.

Keywords: Salmonella spp.; aflatoxins; peanut butter; peanut food safety.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Effects of Salmonella spp. pandemics at personal, company and government level. Approximate magnitude of the monetary value of costs increase from the centre outwards.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Causes and effects of aflatoxin B1 contamination in peanut butter. Poor pre-harvest and post-harvest storage conditions favour the development of aflatoxins in peanuts. Processing conditions can reduce aflatoxin contamination levels. Aflatoxins poisoning can result in acute and/or chronic health problems.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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