Containment of Mycotoxins in the Food Chain by Using Decontamination and Detoxification Techniques

Abstract

Mycotoxin contamination of agricultural products is a global problem but is most severe in tropical and subtropical regions. The Food and Agriculture Organization estimated that up to 25 % of the world food crops are significantly contaminated with mycotoxins. The most effective tools against mycotoxins are essentially based on the prevention of mould growth in each stage of the food chain. A strategy to reduce the risk of mycotoxin contamination should include prevention practice in the field and during the postharvest phase, and control measures. However, when contamination is not prevented during the preharvest and postharvest periods, several approaches can be employed to help remove mycotoxins from the subsequently contaminated commodities, including physical, chemical, and biological techniques. The main decontamination and detoxification strategies, and food processing, used to reduce the mycotoxin in contaminated food or feed are considered in this chapter. Techniques for food decontamination are based on the collection and removal of the contaminated parts from a mass of product. Detoxification processes should destroy or inactivate mycotoxins, generate no toxic products, guarantee the nutritional value of the food, and induce no modification to the technological properties of the product. Detoxification processes effective in vitro do not necessarily retain their efficacy when tested in vivo. Although certain treatments are effective in reducing specific mycotoxins in foods and feeds, no single method is equally effective against the wide variety of mycotoxins occurring in different commodities. More work is needed to study the fate of mycotoxins during decontamination, detoxification, and food processing. Future studies should focus on the reduction of toxicological risk associated with processed commodities contaminated with mycotoxins and on the prevention of recontamination during storage. PU - SPRINGER INTERNATIONAL PUBLISHING AG PI - CHAM PA - GEWERBESTRASSE 11, CHAM, CH-6330, SWITZERLAND