VIEW ARTICLE

Postharvest Pathology and Mycotoxins

Correlation Between Climatic Data and Aflatoxin Contamination of Iranian Pistachio Nuts. D. Danesh, Member of the Horticulture Institute, University of Isfahan, Iran; H. Mojtahedi(2), R. Barnett(3), and A. Campbell(4). (2)Member of the Horticulture Institute, University of Isfahan, Iran; (3)World Health Organization visiting professor, University of Isfahan, Iran; (4)Research coordinator, Office of the Director, Bureau of Foods, U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Washington, DC 20204, USA. Phytopathology 69:715-716. Accepted for publication 22 January 1979. Copyright 1979 The American Phytopathological Society. DOI: 10.1094/Phyto-69-715.

All shipments of Iranian pistachio nuts to the USA must be inspected for aflatoxin contamination and at irregular intervals some of them are rejected. The only point-of-origin climatic factors correlated with rejections were rainfall and number of calm days per month from August through November, the period of ripening and harvest. These conclusions support those of previous studies.