Priorities for mycotoxin research in Europe and the UK.

Abstract

In the European Union the major concerns relating to mycotoxins are from aflatoxins in imported foods, and ochratoxin A and patulin in home-produced commodities. Whilst other mycotoxins such as deoxynivalenol do frequently occur, for example in cereals, they are not presently regulated and not regarded as a high priority. Commodities such as animal feed containing peanut meal, dried figs, pistachios and various spices from specific countries have from time-to-time presented problems and the approach has been to control imports through tough regulatory limits. To back-up these controls the EU has funded a multi-national project which developed and validated several mycotoxin methods for regulatory purposes. HPLC methods with good performance characteristics for aflatoxins, ochratoxin A and patulin at ng/g and sub-ng/g limits in a range of commodities were established. In Europe, ochratoxin A and patulin are two mycotoxins that contaminate home-produced products. Exposure to ochratoxin A has always been of some concern, and whilst there are a range of foodstuffs (cereals, meat products, dried fruit, coffee, wine and beer) that can give rise to that exposure, in the area of home-grown cereals there is the most scope to reduce contamination. In the UK and in Europe, research has focussed on what might be done to prevent or reduce ochratoxin A occurrence in cereals and to develop a HACCP approach to production, identifying and controlling mould growth and toxin formation. Factors such as cereal varieties, farming methods (cultivation and storage), pesticide treatments and the effect of climate are being examined in relation to mould and toxin occurrence. This paper reviews some UK and European funded mycotoxin projects covering the areas indicated above, and presents a view of priorities in the mycotoxin area.