Can moldy peanuts, soybeans, sesame seeds, and rapeseed be pressed for oil, and what toxin do they contain?

Mold is a common natural phenomenon that mostly occurs in food. So can moldy peanuts, soybeans, sesame seeds, and rapeseed still be pressed for oil? What toxin is present? What harm does it do if people eat it? Because food contains a certain amount of starch and protein, and more or less contains some moisture, and the growth and development of mold and insect eggs require the presence of water and warm temperatures. When the water activity value is low, mold and insect eggs cannot absorb water, but after becoming damp, the water activity value rises, and mold and insect eggs will absorb the water in the food and then decompose and consume the nutrients in the food.

Whether moldy peanuts, soybeans, sesame seeds, or rapeseed, none of them can be eaten, and they certainly cannot be pressed for oil!

Moldy food contains aflatoxin. Aflatoxin has strong acute toxicity and also very obvious chronic toxicity and carcinogenicity. Aflatoxin is heat-resistant and is little destroyed at the temperatures of ordinary cooking and processing. Only when the temperature reaches 280°C does it decompose, so moldy food should be discarded and not eaten. Relying on cooking thoroughly cannot destroy the toxin.

Using moldy and spoiled food to press oil cannot filter out the carcinogen aflatoxin in the cold-pressed oil, and long-term consumption harms health. Food safety professionals remind the public to be cautious about buying self-pressed peanut oil.

Moldy peanuts, soybeans, sesame seeds, and rapeseed do contain Aspergillus flavus. Aspergillus flavus is a mold that easily breeds in seed-type foods. The most suitable temperature for the growth of Aspergillus flavus is 26°C-28°C. The higher the temperature, the faster Aspergillus flavus grows, and once at a temperature of 28°C to 33°C and humidity of 80%-100 in the environment, Aspergillus flavus can quickly secrete toxins. Therefore, this toxin survives in the hot and very humid south. These molds also like to grow in nut kernels and oil-containing seeds.

In daily life, attention should be paid to preventing mold and removing toxins, reducing the moisture in food, and ensuring that food is stored dry and ventilated. In this way, Aspergillus flavus is not easy to grow. Also pay attention to small details in food preservation: when buying food, especially grain ingredients such as rice, corn, and peanuts, master the principle of “one look, two smells, three small amounts”, that is:

1. Look for whether there is mold,

2. Smell for musty or other off odors,

3. Do not buy large quantities at one time. In addition, because aflatoxin mostly exists on the surface of the grains, before eating or processing, if they can be washed, rub and rinse them thoroughly to remove the toxin on the surface of the grain.