Tehran University of Medical Sciences Journal of Food Safety and Hygiene 2476-3241 9 4 2024 01 24 299 305 Isaac Makundi Sokoine University of Agriculture Nicas Ngoyinde Department of Microbiology, Parasitology and Biotechnology, Sokoine University of Agriculture 2023 10 05 2024 02 20 Aflatoxins are naturally occurring toxins, predominantly produced by the fungi Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus parasiticus. These toxins are often found in numerous agricultural and food products throughout the world. The current study investigated the natural occurrence of total aflatoxins in dried split ginger purchased from different local markets in the Dar-Es-Salaam region, the eastern zone of Tanzania. Using a cross-sectional sampling design, a total of 50 ginger samples were analyzed in two preparations as a whole and peeled ginger based on Q+ Aflatoxin single-step lateral flow immuno-chromatographic assay. The results revealed that all ginger samples analyzed were positive for aflatoxins with levels ranging from 5.7–28.0 µg/kg and 3.1–21.5 µg/kg for whole and peeled ginger respectively. Forty (80%) and fifteen (30%) of the samples for whole and peeled ginger respectively were above the Tanzanian legally permissible limit of 10 µg/kg. Interestingly, aflatoxins level of contamination in whole ginger were significantly higher than in peeled ginger (p<0.0001). This is the first report on the natural occurrence of aflatoxins in whole and peeled ginger samples from Tanzania. The findings of this study indicated that ginger peels are relatively prone to aflatoxin contamination. https://jfsh.tums.ac.ir/index.php/jfsh/article/view/473 https://jfsh.tums.ac.ir/index.php/jfsh/article/download/473/233