In 2015, all United Nations Member States adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development to achieve peace and prosperity for all people in the planet. Meeting that ambitious agenda depends on fulfilling all objectives of 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Multiple approaches by diverse actors, many of them interconnected, will allow achieving each SDG. However, with compromised food security and food safety, many SDGs will not be realized. In sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), maize and groundnut are two staple crops frequently contaminated with aflatoxins, which threaten food security and food safety. Aflatoxins are extremely dangerous compounds produced primarily by the fungus Aspergillus flavus. Even at minute concentrations, aflatoxins negatively influence health, income, and trade sectors. Farmers, traders, industries, and consumers become affected. However, practical solutions exist. Non-aflatoxin producing isolates (referred to as atoxigenic) of A. flavus can decrease crop aflatoxin content when used in biocontrol formulations to competitively displace aflatoxin producers during crop development. Typically, treated crops contain 80%–100% less aflatoxin than non-treated crops. The technology was developed by USDA-ARS for use in the US and has been adapted and improved for use in SSA where several products under the tradename Aflasafe are available. There are biocontrol products registered for use in 10 SSA countries and more are being developed. On the other hand, although highly effective, biocontrol is not a panacea. Less aflatoxin occurs across value chains when biocontrol is combined with other practices. In this review, we discuss how i) aflatoxin biocontrol products are developed, manufactured, licensed, and commercialized, ii) aflatoxin management strategies are designed, and iii) integrated aflatoxin management is or will soon be contributing to achieve, in several countries, many targets of most SDGs. We present integrated aflatoxin management as a model intervention contributing to tackle several challenges impeding prosperity and peace in SSA.

We are grateful to all farmer, governments, and institutions that have made possible the development, registration and commercialization of the diverse biocontrol products. Equally we are grateful to the institutions and governments that have funded the aflatoxin control program of IITA. The Aflasafe Initiative has received funds by The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF; OPP1007117 and OPP1133356); the United States Agency for International Development (USAID); Meridian Institute on behalf of ...

Alejandro Ortega-Beltranhttps://orcid.org/0000-0003-3747-8094

Ranajit Bandyopadhyayhttps://orcid.org/0000-0003-2422-4298

Plant Production and Health

Aflatoxin; Agronomy; Disease Control; Food Security; Plant Breeding; Plant Diseases; Plant Health; Plant Production

Aflatoxins; Biological Control; Integrated Management; Sustainable Development Goals; Subsaharan Africa

Africa; West Africa

Burkina Faso (Upper Volta); Ghana; Kenya; Malawi; Mozambique; Nigeria; Senegal; Tanzania; The Gambia

Headquarters and Western Africa Hub

Global Food Security