Background and Objective: Aflatoxins are found in various types of food and animal feed. Food contamination with aflatoxin is of particular importance today. The present study aimed to determine the prevalence of aflatoxin M1 in various types of milk supplied in Iran through a systematic review.
Materils and Methods: In this review, national and international databases including SID, MagIran, Embase, ScienceDirect, Scopus, PubMed, and Web of Science (ISI) were extracted without time limit until December 2025. The total number of articles searched was 2250, of which 90 were cited in this study and included 11,632 milk samples.
Results: The results showed that the average concentration of aflatoxin M1 in all types of milk supplied in Iran was 68.47 ng/L, which was lower than the permissible limit of the Iranian standard (100 ng/L); but it exceeded the European Union standard (50 ng/L). The findings of this study showed that 17.78% (16 out of 90 articles) exceeded the values determined by the Iranian standard, and 22.32% (29 out of 90 articles) exceeded the standards determined by the European Union. Therefore, in 59.9% of the studies, the level of contamination with aflatoxin M1 was lower than the European standard. The strict standards set by the relevant authorities are the main reason for the low aflatoxin content in milk supplied in Iran.
Conclusion: Considering the average concentration of aflatoxin M1 in fermented milk in Iran, it does not pose a significant risk to consumers; however, monitoring and screening of livestock feed would help further reduce aflatoxin M1 in milk.
