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Fungal species associated with stored groundnuts together with incidence of aflatoxin contamination in four major growing regions of Ghana were investigated in this study. Aspergillus niger (39.9%) and A. flavus (26.3%) were the predominant species recovered respectively from 73.3% to 83.3% of 60 groundnut samples used for microbial study. A. flavus was found in equal proportion in the four regions under investigation. Other fungal species identified in the study were Colletotrichum (13.3%), Rhizopus (14.8%), Penicillium (5.4%), Curvularia (0.2%) and A. ochraceus (0.1%). A total of 120 samples were assayed for total aflatoxin using HPLC with fluorescence detection. High contamination of groundnut samples (LOD-928.7, mean = 25.0 ng/g) was detected across the four regions with 20.8% exceeding the threshold limit of 20 ng/g total aflatoxin set by the Ghana Standards Authority. A significant positive correlation (0.59, p

Groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L.) is one of the most important oilseed crops in world agricultural trade. It is considered an important crop by virtue of its contribution to satisfying the protein needs of many households who cannot afford animal protein. Production and consumption of groundnuts are hampered among others, by Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus parasiticus infection which subsequently contaminate groundnuts with aflatoxins. Aflatoxins are associated with acute and chronic toxicities in humans and animals causing induction of tumor, liver damage, liver cirrhosis, and carcinogenic, estrogenic, teratogenic, and immunosuppressive effects. Contaminated food crops expose millions of people to high risk of chronic aflatoxin exposure. Aflatoxin contamination can occur in the field before harvest, and after harvest during curing, storage and transportation. The major factors influencing A. flavus and A. parasiticus infection in groundnuts before harvest are insect damage to the developing seed/pod, drought and high soil temperatures. After harvest, environmental conditions such as high humidity and high temperatures promote fungal infection and aflatoxin accumulation. Agronomic practices such as crop rotation, use of resistant varieties, insect control, timely planting and harvesting, weed control, adequate fertilization and late season irrigation can reduce pre-harvest aflatoxin production. Additionally, atoxigenic fungi can be applied in the field to competitively displace toxigenic fungi to reduce the population of toxigenic fungi in the soil. Post-harvest aflatoxin contamination of groundnuts can be minimized by rapid and proper drying following harvesting, proper transportation and packaging, sorting and post-harvest insect control. Sourcing information from different research and review articles, and book chapters, this paper provides extensive review on the predisposing factors and management of groundnut aflatoxin contamination before and after harvest.

Global food production has not kept pace with the increasing population growth. There is a decline in soil fertility and accelerated desertification on marginal soils worldwide, including Ghana Decades of cropping have resulted in unbalanced soil fertility, reduced levels of soil organic matter (OM) and abundance of marginal and degraded soils. Efforts to revive global agricultural productivity, including in Africa, must deal with degraded soils in many parts of the region. A cover crop is a crop planted primarily to manage soil erosion, soil fertility, soil quality, water, weeds, pests, diseases, biodiversity and wildlife in an agro-ecosystem, which is an ecological system managed and largely shaped by humans across a range of intensities to produce food, feed, or fibre. The proportion of Ghana’s population living in urban communities continues to increase. Farming, and for that matter vegetable cultivation, is conventionally a trade for rural dwellers.