**2. Economical and health impact of postharvest diseases of vegetables**

Postharvest diseases cause qualitative and quantitative losses of vegetables and make them unfit for human consumption due to potential health risks. A large number of postharvest diseases are caused by black, white, and yellow fungi-derived carcinogenic mycotoxins and mutagenic secondary metabolites [8]. Losses due to postharvest disease may occur during the handling of produce from harvest to consumption. Primary and secondary agricultural practices are also important and costs such as harvesting, packaging, and transport must be taken into account when estimating the value of the produce lost as a result of postharvest wastage. Fresh vegetables are highly perishable, and they have relatively short shelf lives. Fresh vegetables are living, respiring tissues that start senescing immediately after harvest. They are mostly comprised of water, with most having 90–95% moisture content. Because of the perishable nature of vegetables, special skills are required for postharvest handling. *Aspergillus flavus* is a saprophytic soil inhabitant fungus that infects postharvest vegetables and produces carcinogenic secondary metabolite aflatoxin in tropical, subtropical, and temperate geographic regions of the world. It also causes animal and human diseases (causing aflatoxicosis and/or liver cancer) due to consumption of contaminated food and feed and through invasive growth (causing aspergillosis), which is often fatal to humans who are immunocompromised [9]. A holistic approach is needed for regulating aflatoxins under the trade/export market with biosecurity including biowarfare, biodiversity, and biosafety for liberalized trade under the World Trade Organization (WTO) [10].
