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Toxins Increase in Somali Crops Under Climate Shocks

Harun Maruf

   Somalia is one of the world's countries worst affected by global
   warming, suffering near-constant droughts, heat waves and floods.
   Recent flooding in south central Somalia affected 547,000 people,
   according to U.N. estimates, at a time when more than 2 million are
   food-insecure.

   Scientists and food safety experts say the climate shocks are not only
   destroying Somali crops and livestock but are also increasing the
   levels of toxins in the food that makes it to harvest. The frequent
   droughts, in particular, have significantly increased toxins in maize,
   sorghum and wheat, the main staple foods in the country.

   "What is making Somalia more vulnerable to these toxins is the climate
   change, because our farms are rain-fed," said Abdi Mohamed Hussein,
   head of plant protection at the Ministry of Agriculture. "The droughts
   and the heat are creating a conducive environment for the bacteria to
   grow in these crops, thus damaging the corn trees (stalks)and making it
   easier for the mold and fungus bacteria."

   A study conducted by Queen's University Belfast on Somali crops,
   published earlier this year, found that levels of aflatoxin B1, a toxin
   linked to development of liver cancer, are dangerously high compared to
   European Union levels.

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