Safety of Food and Beverages: Oilseeds and Legumes

Oilseeds and legumes can become contaminated during growth and harvesting of raw materials, storage, and transport to the factory, and processing. The final product may then become recontaminated during subsequent storage and transport to shops, and during storage and preparation by the consumer. Toxigenic microorganisms, pesticide residues, allergic reaction, genetically modified (GM) plants are the major safety concern for the oilseeds and legumes industry. Mycotoxins found primarily in grains, tree nuts, oilseeds, legumes, juices, can also be passed through animals into products such as milk. The adverse health effects of fumonisins and aflatoxin, have been seriously underestimated, particularly in many developing countries where products that are prone to mycotoxin contamination make up for a large portion of the diet. The pesticides found in or on foods are called ‘residues’. In this article, the main source of contaminants (microbiological, chemical), GM plants and allergies of oilseeds and legumes will be discussed.