Michael Walker reviews the regulated mycotoxins and their effects on health together with the methods for their sampling and analysis.
Mouldy food served in restaurants or shops is likely to be sent straight back with a complaint. But what happens if the mould isn’t spotted and is unwittingly ingested? There’s more at stake than an unappetising meal and a bad reputation for the restaurant.
Contamination of raw food material by toxic mould metabolites, known as mycotoxins, can cause vomiting and diarrhoea as well as cancer. Careful crop husbandry, timely harvesting and proper storage provide barriers to contamination and statistically valid sampling followed by chemical analysis acts to secure supply chain safety. Yet contamination can still occur.
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