Determination and Survey of Deoxynivalenol in White Flour, Whole Wheat Flour, and Bran

Abstract

A liquid chromatographic (LC) method for determining deoxynivalenol (DON) in white flour, whole wheat flour, and bran was developed. A 25 g test portion was extracted with acetonitrile-water (84 + 16), and the extract was filtered and applied to a column containing a combination of charcoal, Celite, and other adsorbents. The eluate was then chromatographed on a silica-based, reversed-phase LC column by using a gradient of water and methanol. DON was measured at 220 nm. Average recoveries of DON from white flour, whole wheat flour, and bran spiked at 1 microgram/g were 88, 86, and 85%, respectively. The limit of determination of the method was < 0.5 micrograms/g. A total of 562 wheat-based products from the 1993 crop year were collected by 21 U.S. Food and Drug Administration District Offices and analyzed by this method in Kansas City, Seattle, and New Orleans District Laboratories. The numbers of samples with DON contamination > or = 1 microgram/g from 163 bran, 272 white flour, 90 whole wheat flour, and 37 miscellaneous test samples were 20, 28, 14, and 2, respectively. About 52, 50, 40, and 27% of the same test samples were contaminated with DON at levels > 0.01 micrograms/g.