Growing Concerns Over Mycotoxins

Digital Re-print - July | August 2009 Feature: Mycotoxins Feature title: Growing concerns over mycotoxins Grain & Feed Milling Technology is published six times a year by Perendale Publishers Ltd of the United Kingdom. All data is published in good faith, based on information received, and while every care is taken to prevent inaccuracies, the publishers accept no liability for any errors or omissions or for the consequences of action taken on the basis of information published. ©Copyright 2009 Perendale Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form or by any means without prior permission of the copyright owner. Printed by Perendale Publishers Ltd. ISSN: 1466-3872

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Mycotoxins

Feature

Feature

Mycotoxins

Growing concerns over

mycotoxins by Lucy de la Pasture, Pinstone Communications Ltd

N

o one involved in the grain chain wants to see another season like 2008, when levels of mycotoxins in wheat made trading conditions difficult to say the least. So what can be done to prevent a reoccurrence? Lucy de la Pasture of Pinstone Communications Ltd in the UK finds out more on this subject for GFMT

The quality of the British wheat crop is always subject to the vagaries of our climate,

12 | July-august 2009

something that can’t be predicted and most often causes problems with lodging, giving rise to low specific weights and poor Hagbergs. Last season very wet growing and harvest conditions led to extensive early lodging, high disease levels and a protracted harvest – all factors which made 2008 break all records for exceeding EU limits for mycotoxins, deoxynivalenol (DON) and zearalenone (ZON) in raw grain. So why do mycotoxins occur and what can growers do to reduce the risk of them occurring and make sure grain is fit for human consumption?

“Mycotoxins are produced by several species of Fusarium fungi,” explains Dr Simon Edwards, fusarium specialist at Harper Adams University College. “This year risk of fusarium is currently moderate to high, depending on rainfall in the area where crops are being grown,” says Dr Edwards. “There is a lot of inoculum as a result of high levels of fusarium head blight (FHB) last year.”

Rainfall and timing dependent The level of mycotoxins is highly dependent on rainfall over flowering and during ripening. Many areas have had rainfall over flowering this season, but this has been very variable. “Much of the wheat crop had finished flowering before recent rainfall on the south coast, whilst late drilled wheat in Lincolnshire and Yorkshire was just starting to flower so was more vulnerable to fusarium infection,” comments Dr Edwards. “The west and the Midlands has also had plenty of rain over the flowering period and generally the east of the country has had much less.” Timing of rainfall is important because as well as dictating the amount of fusarium infection likely in crops, it also influences the type of mycotoxin produced. DON mycotoxin is produced from fusarium infection during the flowering period, so rainfall at this timing may mean higher risk of DON occurring.

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Wheat growers use a risk assessment tool, developed by the Home-Grown Cereals Authority (HGCA), which enables them to make an entry on the grain passport that accompanies each load on sale and identify loads at risk and in need of further testing. Last season the system seriously broke down and the passports failed to adequately give grain buyers an indication of mycotoxin risk. Dr Edwards, explaining why this happened, says, “The HGCA risk assessment was based on data from 2001 to 2007 and during this time average rainfall in the preharvest period was 20mm. “Last year actual rainfall was in the region of 100mm, with a substantial delay to harvest because of the wet weather in August and September - none of this was factored in the model!” So can grain millers and processors have confidence in the risk assessment system in place after last season? The HGCA have taken urgent action to address the issue. “This season the risk assessment has been revised to take these factors in to account and enable growers to identify fields at particular risk which may then require testing,” reassures Dr Edwards. As well as rainfall, the risk assessment scores other factors such as region, previous crop, cultivation, variety and T3 fungicide.

Reducing risk Growers can reduce much of the risk of mycotoxins by taking measures before a crop is planted.

“Crop debris is an important source of reduce the risk of FHB occurring is to apply inoculum and burying this by ploughing will a fungicide programme using products with some fusarium activity and culminating in a reduce risk,” explains Dr Edwards. “Conversely, fields which have had mini- robust T3 (or ‘earwash’) treatment. mal cultivations or are directdrilled will be at higher risk of developing Making the World¥s Food Safer fusarium and the mycotoxins they produce.” Late planted wheat following potatoes and maize, a known source of inoculum, are also factors that Öby checking your increase risk. A sample with our large percentage of the national fast and convenient wheat crop was rapid test kits… planted late in www.romerlabs.com 2008 as a result of the protracted harvest – another Öor by letting your contributory facsamples be tested in tor to the high one of our accredited levels of inoculum currently being laboratories around found in some the globe. crops. On a practiwww.quantas-analytics.com cal level, once a crop is planted Romer Labs Diagnostic GmbH - Europe, Austria the only meaTel: +43 2272 615331-0, Fax: +43 2272 615331-11 sures growe-Mail: of[email protected] ers can take to distributed in the UK by: QuadraChem Laboratories Ltd. Æ

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Mycotoxins

Feature

Procam agronomist Tom Scotson explains that whereas T3 decisions used to be a top-up for septoria and rust control, things have definitely changed. “Concerns with DON levels in milling wheat and breakfast cereals, means we must have a planned strategy to control fusarium,” says Mr Scotson. “Mycotoxins are a matter growers are now taking very seriously. “The T3 spray is no longer a case of using up whatever fungicides are left in the spray store!”

Useful additions to the armoury

“The limits for mycotoxins tighten as you move further down the food chain. Where the limit for DON in raw wheat is 1250 ppb, for breakfast cereals the limit is just 500 ppb”

FHB is caused by several species of Fusarium that affect wheat and Microdochium spp. but only the true Fusarium spp. produce mycotoxins. In the UK this means that the presence of FHB in a crop does not necessarily indicate a risk from mycotoxins, whether they’ll be produced depends on the fungal species causing the infection. One of the problems with fusarium control is that it is not a disease that is ‘visible’ when treatment needs to be applied, symptoms of head blight don’t show until the wheat begins to ripen. ‘Crop Monitor’ is a system that provides growers with real-time information about the levels of fusarium infection and the species of fungi which have been isolated from samples in their growing region - useful information for getting a ‘feel’ for the season and influencing spray decisions.

14 | July-august 2009

Not all fungicides control To complicate matters not all fungicides will control true Fusarium spp. Azoxystrobin from the strobilurin group of fungicides, is renowned for keeping wheat ears golden and bright but only controls Microdochium spp. and not Fusarium spp. To cover all the bases, T3 mixes must contain triazoles or new approval Topsin WG (thiophanate-methyl) to reduce the risk of mycotoxins. And of the available active ingredients only those containing prothioconazole, bromuconazole and thiophanatemethyl go as far as claiming mycotoxin reduction on the label. Getting timing of T3 fungicides right is crucial for maximum control of fusarium, with best results achieved in the early flowering period – from the onset of flowering to 50 percent anthesis (GS61-65).

With fungicide options limited for mycotoxin reduction, Mr Scotson describes thiophanate-methyl as a useful addition to the armoury this season, especially important because it has a different mode of action to prothioconazole, the industry standard for control of FHB. Even when every possible measure has been taken to reduce risk sometimes the weather has the last word! Rainfall later in the season increases risk of ZON production. And this was seen clearly last year when ZON proved to be a real problem for the first time and 29 percent of samples exceeded the 100 ppb EU limit. “Any delay in harvest has an impact on ZON levels and after last seasons protracted harvest, more samples exceeded the EU limit for ZON than the limit for DON mycotoxins (1250 ppb),” explains Dr Edwards. “Many high ZON samples don’t make milling specification as they tend to have low Hagbergs and specific weights and are therefore effectively ‘screened out’ and less of an issue at mill intake.” But this isn’t always the case, as suppliers to breakfast cereal manufacturers found out last season when initially load after load was rejected. Mycotoxins are found mostly in the bran and, because this is the main fibre source in breakfast cereals, bran is an essential ingredient! As grain is dried during processing to approximately five percent moisture content the mycotoxins become concentrated, meaning raw grain at intake needs to be well below the limits already set. And to further compound matters, the limits for mycotoxins tighten as you move further down the food chain. Where the limit for DON in raw wheat is 1250 ppb, for breakfast cereals the limit is just 500 ppb. Faced with a problem that becomes worse during processing and the implications of a product recall, breakfast cereal manufacturers were the first to introduce rapid testing for DON in November 2008. “Once we had the DON situation under control, we identified issues with ZON for

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Grain

Feature

Mycotoxins

the first time,” explains Weetabix’s Keith Turnbull. “ZON appeared late and was a problem in raw material supply but now testing is in place for this as well.”

Rapid testing So is rapid testing here to stay? At least until the true picture for harvest 2009 has been established, believes Mr Turnbull. “Now the industry is set to manage an exceptionally bad season for mycotoxins. The whole grain chain has the opportunity to learn from it, make British farming as safe as possible, manage the risk in the crop and come out stronger than before.” And Martin Savage, Trade Policy Manager for the National Association of British and Irish Millers, agrees rapid testing needs to stay in place for at least the first six weeks after harvest. “Food safety is paramount and the trade need reassurance that the revised risk assessment is working and that growers are completing the passports diligently. The introduction of the mycotoxin legislation has made growers legally responsible for food safety on raw wheat for the first time,” he adds. Although rapid testing is an unwanted cost

for grain producers, the costs associated with load rejections is much higher. One of the problems with mycotoxins is that they don’t occur in a homogenous way, one load can be high and another low, yet they come from the same field. Sampling is an area being closely looked at by The Mycotoxin Stakeholder Group, a cross-industry informal body who are working to find a better sampling regime than the HGCA and the official EU techniques currently used. “Sampling remains an area of concern from the growers perspective,” explains Simon Christensen, Frontier’s head of wheat trading. “They need to be confident that the tests carried out at intake are accurate and that the wheat imported also follows the same requirements from a testing and sampling regime to ensure a level playing field exists with foreign counterparts. But the message about the importance of mycotoxins has been understood by farmers.” In all likelihood, 2009 harvest is not likely to be as bad as last season but the potential remains for mycotoxin problems to occur – but hopefully this season the industry is one step ahead!

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In this issue: • Enzymes in breadmaking: Economic relevance, markets, and future perspectives • Preserving

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t growers use a risk assessment veloped by the Home-Grown Authority (HGCA), which enables make an entry on the grain passport ompanies each load on sale and oads at risk and in need of further

eason the system seriously broke d the passports failed to adequately n buyers an indication of mycotoxin

dwards, explaining why this hapays, “The HGCA risk assessment d on data from 2001 to 2007 and is time average rainfall in the preeriod was 20mm. year actual rainfall was in the region m, with a substantial delay to harvest of the wet weather in August and er - none of this was factored in el!” n grain millers and processors have ce in the risk assessment system in er last season? HGCA have taken urgent action to he issue. season the risk assessment has been o take these factors in to account le growers to identify fields at park which may then require testing,” Dr Edwards. ell as rainfall, the risk assessment her factors such as region, previous ivation, variety and T3 fungicide.

ng risk

ers can reduce much of the risk oxins by taking measures before a anted.

Feature

Mycotoxins

the first time,” explains Weetabix’s Keith Turnbull. “ZON appeared late and was a problem in raw material supply but now testing is in place for this as well.”

Rapid testing So is rapid testing here to stay? At least until the true picture for harvest 2009 has been established, believes Mr Turnbull. “Now the industry is set to manage an exceptionally bad season for mycotoxins. The whole grain chain has the opportunity to learn from it, make British farming as safe as possible, manage the risk in the crop and come out stronger than before.” And Martin Savage, Trade Policy Manager for the National Association of British and Irish Millers, agrees rapid testing needs to stay in place for at least the first six weeks after harvest. “Food safety is paramount and the trade need reassurance that the revised risk assessment is working and that growers are completing the passports diligently. The introduction of the mycotoxin legislation has made growers legally responsible for food safety on raw wheat for the first time,” he adds. Although rapid testing is an unwanted cost

ADVERTISERS LINKS “Crop debris is an important source of reduce the risk of FHB occurring is to apply inoculum and burying this by ploughing will a fungicide programme using products with some fusarium activity and culminating in a reduce risk,” explains Dr Edwards. “Conversely, fields which have had mini- robust T3 (or ‘earwash’) treatment. mal cultivations or are directdrilled will be at higher risk of developing Making the World¥s Food Safer fusarium and the mycotoxins they produce.” Late planted wheat following potatoes and maize, a known source of inoculum, are also factors that Öby checking your increase risk. A large percentage of the national wheat crop was planted late in 2008 as a result of the protracted harvest – another contributory factor to the high levels of inoculum currently being found in some crops. On a practical level, once a crop is planted the only measures growers can take to

sample with our

fast and convenient

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– Hygiene, Health and Safety – Wheat and the Screenroom – Mill Processes and Performance – Product Handling, Storage and Distribution – Flour – Power and Automation – Flour Milling Management

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The cost per module is: £295 (as at 2009 – VAT at 15% where applicable) includes postage, textbook and exam registration nabim Members: Discount £95 per module (£200) Non-UK Companies: Discount £50 per module (£245)

• Developed for millers by industry professionals

An indispensable tool for those new to the milling industry and for developing the skills of the competent miller.

Romer Labs Diagnostic GmbH - Europe, Austria Tel: +43 2272 615331-0, Fax: +43 2272 615331-11 e-Mail: of[email protected]

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for grain producers, the costs associated with load rejections is much higher. One of the problems with mycotoxins is that they don’t occur in a homogenous way, one load can be high and another low, yet they come from the same field. Sampling is an area being closely looked at by The Mycotoxin Stakeholder Group, a cross-industry informal body who are working to find a better sampling regime than the HGCA and the official EU techniques currently used. “Sampling remains an area of concern from the growers perspective,” explains Simon Christensen, Frontier’s head of wheat trading. “They need to be confident that the tests carried out at intake are accurate and that the wheat imported also follows the same requirements from a testing and sampling regime to ensure a level playing field exists with foreign counterparts. But the message about the importance of mycotoxins has been understood by farmers.” In all likelihood, 2009 harvest is not likely to be as bad as last season but the potential remains for mycotoxin problems to occur – but hopefully this season the industry is one step ahead!

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