Food Safety Risks from Mycotoxin in Sierra Leone Based on Multi Stakeholder Knowledge Attitudes and Practices
A 2025 cross-sectional study in Sierra Leone reveals a critical gap in mycotoxin awareness and widespread unsafe food handling practices among consumers, farmers, traders, and health professionals, highlighting an urgent need for national education campaigns, improved storage infrastructure, and stronger regulatory frameworks to mitigate chronic dietary exposure risks.
Original paper licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). This is an AI-generated explanation of the paper below. It is not written or endorsed by the authors. For technical accuracy, refer to the original paper. Read full disclaimer
In the humid, tropical climates of West Africa, the air itself can become a breeding ground for invisible threats. When crops like maize, groundnuts, and rice are harvested, they face a constant battle against fungi, a type of mold that thrives in warmth and moisture. While these fungi are often visible as fuzzy patches on spoiled food, they produce something far more dangerous than simple rot: microscopic, heat-stable poisons called mycotoxins. Unlike the mold you can see, these toxins cannot be washed away, cooked out, or easily removed by cutting off the bad parts. They remain in the food, ready to cause serious health issues ranging from liver damage and immune system failure to stunted growth in children. For decades, scientists have known that these invisible contaminants are a major global health crisis, particularly in regions where food storage is difficult and the climate favors fungal growth. Yet, for the people living in these areas, the danger often remains a mystery, hidden behind the daily struggle to feed a family.
A recent investigation in Sierra Leone sought to uncover just how much people know about this silent threat and how they handle food that shows signs of spoilage. The study, conducted in November 2025, gathered data across five different districts spanning the country's diverse regions, from the coastal lowlands to the inland savannah. Researchers analyzed responses from hundreds of households, farmers, traders, and health workers to understand the gap between the science of food safety and the reality of daily life. What they found was a landscape of deep uncertainty. When asked if they had ever heard the word "mycotoxin," only a tiny fraction of the people surveyed, about four out of every hundred, could say yes. Even among those who had heard of the term, very few could name the specific types of poisons involved. The vast majority of people simply did not know that the fuzzy growth on their stored grains could be producing invisible toxins that persist even after cooking.
The study revealed that knowledge about these dangers is closely tied to education. People with no formal schooling were almost entirely unaware of the concept, while those with university education were more likely to have heard of it, though even among the educated, awareness remained low. This lack of knowledge led to widespread misconceptions about how to handle spoiled food. Many people believed that if they washed the food, dried it again in the sun, or cut away the visible mold, the rest of the crop was safe to eat. In reality, the toxins have often already spread throughout the food before the mold becomes visible, and heat does not destroy them. Despite these risks, economic necessity often drives behavior. When faced with a bag of moldy grain, many families feel they cannot afford to throw it away. Instead, they might cut off the worst parts to save the rest, wash the grains to clean them, or even feed the contaminated food to their livestock, unknowingly passing the toxins into the meat, milk, and eggs that their families consume.
The researchers also looked at how food is stored. Most households keep their staples in woven bags or plastic buckets, which allow moisture and air to circulate. In a hot, humid climate, this setup encourages the growth of more mold and the production of more toxins. Very few people use airtight containers that could keep the air out and stop the fungi from growing. The study found that while most people say they sort through their grains to remove bad pieces, they often do this only right before cooking, rather than regularly during storage. This means that moldy kernels can sit in a bag for months, spreading their spores and toxins to the healthy grains around them. Even among farmers and health professionals, the understanding of the problem was limited. Only a small percentage of health workers had received any training on mycotoxins, and many did not recognize the term until it was explained to them during the survey.
The findings paint a clear picture of a system where the danger is real but the awareness is missing. The people of Sierra Leone are not ignoring the problem; they are simply unaware of the invisible nature of the threat. They operate on the assumption that if they can see the mold, they can fix it, and if they can't see it, the food is safe. This belief is dangerous because the toxins are invisible and permanent. The study suggests that without a significant shift in public understanding and a change in how food is handled and stored, the cycle of exposure will continue. The researchers emphasize that solving this issue requires more than just telling people to throw away bad food; it requires building a system where safe storage is possible and where the invisible risks are made visible through education. Until then, the invisible poisons will continue to pose a silent threat to the health and future of the population, hidden in plain sight within the very food that sustains them.
Drowning in papers in your field?
Get daily digests of the most novel papers matching your research keywords — with technical summaries, in your language.