en Food Safety and Hygiene Food Safety and Hygiene پژوهشي Original Article <div><span style="font-size:14px;"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"><strong><span style="line-height:107%">Background:&nbsp;</span></strong><span style="line-height:normal"><span style="color:black">The presence of Aflatoxin</span>&nbsp;<span style="color:black">M1 (AFM1) in dairy products results from the ingestion of feedstuffs contaminated with aflatoxin</span>&nbsp;<span style="color:black">B1 by ruminants. The current study aimed to determine the AFM1 concentration in commercial pasteurized cow milk samples obtained from the Iranian market. </span></span><br> <span style="line-height:normal"><b><span style="color:black">Methods</span></b><span style="color:black">: A total of 54 pasteurized cow milk samples, manufactured between January and April 2019, were purchased from different cities in Iran, including Tehran, Isfahan, Sari, Tabriz, Zanjan, Kermanshah, Ahvaz, Shiraz, and Kerman. These samples were analyzed using a competitive enzyme-linked immune-sorbent assay technique. The associated health risk was estimated by the Monte Carlo simulation method. Additionally, the margin of exposure and cancer risk were employed as benchmarks to assess threats to consumer health.</span></span><br> <span style="line-height:normal"><b><span style="color:black">Results</span></b><span style="color:black">: AFM1 was detected in 33 samples (61 %), totally with concentrations ranging from 0.003 to 0.45 &micro;g kg^-1. 9.26 % of the samples exceeded the maximum residue level specified by Iran&#39;s national standard (0.1 &micro;g kg^-1). The average concentration of AFM1 in the 54 pasteurized milk samples collected from different regions was determined to be 0.042 &plusmn; 0.072 &micro;g L^-1. Nevertheless, all samples remained below <span style="background:white">the US Food and Drug Administration</span> (USFDA) maximum limit (0.5 &micro;g kg^-1). Human health risk assessment showed that about half of the consumers were at risk based on the Margin of Exposure (MOE) assessment.</span></span><br> <b><span style="line-height:107%"><span style="color:black">Conclusion</span></span></b><span style="line-height:107%"><span style="color:black">: The results of this survey indicate the usefulness of a monitoring program to supervise the safety of commercially available pasteurized cow milk for consumers.</span></span></span></span></div> Food safety, Pasteurized milk, Aflatoxin M1, Risk assessment, Mycotoxin, Contaminants, 18 23 http://jhehp.zums.ac.ir/browse.php?a_code=A-10-607-1&slc_lang=en&sid=1 Vahid Mofid vmofid@yahoo.com 100319475328460013973 0000000344281126 No Department of Food Science and Technology, Faculty of Nutrition and Food Technology, National Nutrition and Food Technology Research Institute, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. Leila Peivasteh-roudsari leila.peivasteh@yahoo.com 100319475328460013974 0000000301439288 No Food and Drug Administration of Iran, Ministry of Health and Medical Education, Tehran, Iran. Hadis Karami hkarami3240@gmail.com 100319475328460013975 0000000269843677 No Division of Food Safety and Hygiene, Department of Environmental Health Engineering, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. Behrouz Tajdar-oranj tajdar.tums@yahoo.com 100319475328460013976 0000000189705733 No Nutrition Sciences and Food Technology Research Center, Health Institute, Kermanshah University of Medical Science, Kermanshah, Iran. Adel Mirza Alizadeh alizadeh.sbmu@gmail.com 100319475328460013977 0000000172685115 No Social Determinants of Health Research Center, Zanjan University of Medical Sciences, Zanjan, Iran; Department of Food Safety and Hygiene, School of Public Health, Zanjan University of Medical Sciences, Zanjan, Iran. Marziyeh Karami karamii.m@yahoo.com 100319475328460013978 0000000313649901 No Division of Food Safety and Hygiene, Department of Environmental Health Engineering, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. Anosheh Rahmani a.rahmani@standard.ac.ir 100319475328460013979 000000030795992X Yes Department of Food, Halal and Agricultural Products, Food Technology and Agricultural Products Research Center, Standard Research Institute (SRI), Karaj, Iran.