A total of 246 apparently healthy corn samples were collected from nine villages in the counties of Cixian, Linxian, Anyang, Fanxian and Yanqing in the People's Republic of China. All of the samples were harvested in the autumn of 1995 and were intended for human consumption. The samples were analyzed for fumonisin and aflatoxin B₁ contamination by ELISA. Of 164 corn samples collected from areas in which the risk of human esophageal cancer (HEC) is high, fumonisin was detected in 106 samples (0.5-16.0 ppm, average ; 0.70 ppm), but of 82 samples collected from HEC low risk areas, fumonisin was found in 23 samples (0.5-1.5 ppm, average ; 0.20 ppm). The frequency of fumonisin contamination in the high risk areas was approximately twice that of low risk areas, and the average content of fumonisin in samples from HEC high risk areas was about three times higher than that from HEC low risk areas. For aflatoxin B₁, the concentration and frequency of aflatoxin B₁ positive samples varied greatly from village to village but in general, aflatoxin contamination was low in HEC low risk areas. Although a clear relationship between fumonisin contamination and HEC incidence could not be distinguished, it is evident that people living in HEC high risk area sustained more exposure to fumonisin and aflatoxin than people living in HEC low risk area.