Mycotoxins in organic and conventional cereals and cereal products grown and marketed in Croatia.

In this study, the levels of aflatoxin B1 (AFB1), ochratoxin A (OTA), zearalenone (ZEN), deoxynivalenol (DON) and fumonisins (FUM) in unprocessed cereals (n = 189) and cereal-based products (n = 61) were determined using validated ELISA methods. All samples originated from either conventional or organic production corresponded to the 2015 harvest in Croatia. Based on the mean mycotoxin concentrations, the risk for the consumer to exceed the tolerable daily intake (TDI) for these toxins by the consumption of both types of cereals and cereal-based products was assessed. Mycotoxin contamination of organic cereals and organic cereal-based products was not significantly different (p > 0.05). Given that the exposure assessment resulted in a small fraction of the TDI (maximum: DON, 12% of TDI), the levels of the investigated mycotoxins in both types of cereals and cereal-based products from the 2015 harvest did not pose a human health hazard.

Correlation of deoxynivalenol and fumonisin concentration determined in maize by ELISA methods.

Maize (Zea mays) is one of the most common crops in Croatia that is often contaminated with mycotoxins. The enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method as a screening immunological method has become very popular in the determination of mycotoxins contamination of cereals, as it has many advantages such as a rapid and simple determination of their concentration. In this present study, 40 maize samples collected from animal feed factories were analyzed for the concentration of deoxynivalenol (DON) and fumonisin (FUM) using the validated ELISA method of two different kit manufacturers to investigate the correlation of the determined mycotoxins concentration. The correlation coefficients for the concentration of DON and FUM, obtained using different kit manufacturers, were r = 0.9698 and r = 0.9303, respectively, yielding a high correlation between the applied ELISA methods. Concerning the legislation, in one maize sample, the DON concentration higher than the maximum recommended value was determined (16.24 mg/kg), whereas the FUM concentration in all the analyzed samples, without exception, were in accordance with recommended values.

The natural occurrence of T-2 toxin and fumonisins in maize samples in Croatia.

Maize (Zea mays) considered to be one of the most frequent crops in Croatia, is often contaminated with Fusarium mycotoxins. The aim of this study was to investigate the possible contamination of maize with T-2 toxin and fumonisins on 46 samples from different regions of Croatia. The highest concentrations of T-2 toxin and fumonisins were 210 and 25,200 ng/g, with mean values of 110 and 4,509 ng/g, respectively, pointing to maize contamination with these mycotoxins after the period of the year with extremely high rainfall.

Mould and mycotoxin contamination of pig feed in northwest Croatia.

The aim of this study was to investigate the contamination of pig feed with moulds and the occurrence of mycotoxins. A total of 30 feed samples were collected at different animal feed factories in the north-western part of Croatia. Mycological analysis showed that the total number of moulds ranged from 1 × 10(3) to 1 × 10(5) cfu/g with samples contaminated with Aspergillus spp. (63 %), Penicillium spp. (80 %), and Fusarium spp. (77 %). A determination of aflatoxin B1 (AFB1), ochratoxin A (OTA), zearalenone (ZEA), deoxynivalenol (DON), T-2 toxin (T-2) and fumonisin (FUM) concentration was done using the validated ELISA method. The mean concentrations of AFB1 (0.5 ± 0.6 µg/kg), OTA (1.53 ± 0.42 µg/kg) and FUM (405 ± 298 µg/kg) were below the maximum levels or recommended values in the EU in all the investigated samples. The observed results indicated an increased contamination of pig feed with Fusarium mycotoxins DON and ZEA with mean concentrations of 817 ± 447 and 184 ± 214 µg/kg, higher than recommended in 40 and 17 % of the analysed samples, respectively.