To date, over 250 species of mould have been identified, which together produce more than 300 different mycotoxins. However, only a few of these can actually lead to contamination of feed and food: aflatoxins, Alternaria toxins, Fusarium toxins, ergot alkaloids, ochratoxins, patulin and citrinin.
Aflatoxins, for example, have carcinogenic potential and can damage genetic material. If food containing elevated levels of aflatoxins is consumed on a single occasion or over a short period, no adverse health effects are expected. Long-term consequences may include kidney damage, liver damage such as cirrhosis, and kidney and liver cancer.
Strict controls
In the EU, maximum levels apply to certain mycotoxins in various food groups, which producers and traders are required to comply with.
Foodstuffs are regularly tested for mycotoxins as part of official controls. Foodstuffs intended for infants and young children, as a particularly vulnerable population group, are subject to targeted priority checks. If maximum levels are exceeded, the affected foodstuffs must be withdrawn from the market immediately.
Over the past three years, around 2,400 food samples (e.g. bread, cereal-based weaning foods, cocoa, maize and maize products, nuts, fruit juices) have been tested for mycotoxins. In one sample (rigatoni) from 2023, aflatoxin B1 was found to exceed the maximum level.
In the case of animal feed, approximately 1,400 random samples have also been tested for aflatoxin B1 as part of the official feed control programme since 1 January 2020. Aflatoxin B1 was detected in 37 samples, with all levels below the legally prescribed maximum limit for aflatoxin B1. No aflatoxin B1 was detected in any of the other samples.
For maize, we have been carrying out pre-harvest mycotoxin monitoring of grain maize in collaboration with the Chambers of Agriculture for 15 years, in order to obtain an initial overview of quality even before the main harvest. Aflatoxins are also tested as part of this – to date, there has been no detection of aflatoxin B1.
In addition, we are currently working on a research project to develop a mycotoxin prediction model based on weather data. The project combines mycotoxin analysis results with weather data. Based on this, models are developed that enable early predictions of mycotoxin contamination. This allows appropriate countermeasures to be taken in good time.
Impact of climate change
Moulds of the genus Aspergillus have always been present in our region. It has been known since the 1980s that, under the right climatic conditions, these moulds can also produce aflatoxins. Models also suggest that, as a result of climate change, moulds are moving 3 km towards the poles every year. Hotter summers increase the likelihood that aflatoxins will also be found in Austrian food and animal feed.