Abstract

Heavy metals are a group of elements that could be found in poultry feeds and influence poultry production. Poultry feed generally consists of agricultural products, such as maize, groundnuts, and wheat, which may also be contaminated by mycotoxins. The use of mycotoxins and heavy metals contaminated feed in the poultry sector might represent a potential source of cross-contamination for humans. This study aimed to analyze total aflatoxins (AFs), aflatoxin B1 (AFB1), ochratoxin A (OTA), chromium, copper, nickel, zinc, arsenic, cadmium, lead, and mercury in poultry feed from the Centre, Littoral, and Western regions of Cameroon. In this order, six local broiler feeds, six local layer feeds, and three imported layer feeds were randomly collected from each region and analyzed using inductively coupled plasma spectrometry for heavy metals and competitive indirect ELISA for mycotoxins. The results indicated that all feed samples contained the analyzed mycotoxins and heavy metals. The ranges for the mean concentrations of mycotoxins were 3.5-19.7, 2.7-19.3, 0.8-1.1 μg/kg for AFs, AFB1, and OTA, respectively. They were globally below the established regulated limits (20 μg/kg for AFs, 10 μg/kg for AFB1 and 5 μg/kg for OTA). The bulk layer feed from the Littoral region had the highest lead (995.8 ± 0.4 μg/kg) and cadmium (3.3 ± 0.0 μg/kg) concentrations. The average concentration of lead was above the permissible limit (10 μg/kg). Bulk broiler feed from the Littoral region scored the highest concentration of arsenic (2819.4 ± 0.1 μg/kg) above the permissible limit (500 μg/kg). Bulk broiler feed from the Centre region showed the highest concentration of mercury (5.6 ± 0.0 μg/kg) although lower than the permissible limit of 100 μg/kg. This study demonstrates that there are potential safety issues associated to poultry feeds used in some regions of Cameroon. It suggests a possible low productivity of poultry and health issues for consumers. © 2023,Journal of World''s Poultry Research. All Rights Reserved.