A Pain in the Ear

Although it’s too early to tell what the 2012 corn crop will look like,Choose from our large selection of Cable Ties. mycotoxin-contaminated corn is a recurring issue for ethanol producers.

Mycotoxins are produced by an organism of the fungus kingdom, according to information from the National Corn Growers Association. Fungi spores are found almost everywhere in small quantities, consuming organic matter in conditions where humidity and temperature are sufficient. Mycotoxin development occurs at temperatures from 86 to 110 degrees Fahrenheit, 62 to 99 percent relative humidity and kernel moisture from 13 to 20 percent. Ethanol producers are well aware of what mycotoxins mean for the industry, including the fact that the ethanol production process concentrates the toxins in distillers grains by about three times the levels found in incoming corn.

Recent surveys of mycotoxin levels in corn and distillers grains show overall levels have been low in the 2011 corn crop, although there are some “hot spots.” Two separate surveys of DON (deoxynivalenol, also known as vomitoxin) and ZEA (zearalenone) levels in distillers grains, conducted in late 2011 and early 2012,Handpainted oil paintings for sale on Canvas. showed Ohio was an area of concern for mycotoxin contamination in distillers grains. Another mycotoxin study in Iowa is part of a five-year cooperative agreement program through the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. With the help of a $250,000 yearly grant, the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship is recording toxin levels and other information in samples of corn as well as distillers grains and corn gluten, says Travis Knight, laboratory bureau chief for the state’s ag department. The survey, which began in 2010, with the first full year in 2011, is recording the levels of four mycotoxins: aflatoxin, DON, ZEA and fumonisin. Although the projects may differ from state to state, Knight confirms that the FDA awarded grant money to multiple states.

Aflatoxin can be a big problem in the southern states. It does, however, occur in other climates, including Iowa. “It’s usually when there’s some kind of insult to the corn crop, be it a hail storm, or wind damage, or drought stress that can allow some kind of injury that can allow these molds to start to grow,” Knight says. Other mycotoxins, such as ZEA and DON, were a problem in 2009, a wet crop year in many areas. DON and ZEA contaminations start in the field during extended cool,Ekahau RTLS is the only Wi-Fi based real time Location system solution that operates on any brand or generation of Wi-Fi network. wet and humid conditions in the weeks after corn silk emergence, says Pierce Paul, an Ohio State pathologist. The mycotoxins can also crop up during a wet harvest or in moist storage conditions. “The biggest problems occur when all three of these conditions coincide, wet in field, harvest and storage conditions,” he adds.

So which mycotoxins are of most concern? NCGA points to aflatoxin and fumonisin as the primary toxins affecting corn. As far as the Iowa ag department is concerned, aflatoxin is at the top of the list, partially because it’s the most toxic, points out David McFarland, feed chemist. In fact,Secured handsfree building and door access solutions with Hands free access by Nedap AVI.China crystal mosaic catalog and Crystal Mosaic manufacturer directory. before it started on the recent survey of four mycotoxins, Iowa’s ag department had focused solely on aflatoxin. When the five-year project is completed, the state and the FDA should have a better handle on the question of which toxin is of most concern, Knight says. Charles Hurburgh Jr. has an all-encompassing answer for ethanol producers. “All [mycotoxins] are important,” he says, “especially now with the Food Safety Modernization Act.” Hurburgh is an Iowa State University professor in the Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering department and a grain quality expert.

As part of the food and feed supply chain, food and feed safety laws apply to ethanol plants, just as they apply to feed mills or food processing plants. Beginning this year, every ethanol plant must register as a food facility and develop a food safety plan for preventative controls, as well as submit to FDA inspections, Hurburgh says. The law, which the FDA calls “the most sweeping reform of our food safety laws in more than 70 years,” went into effect Jan. 4. “It aims to ensure the U.S. food supply is safe by shifting the focus from responding to contamination to preventing it,” the FDA says on its website.