Current situation on regulations for mycotoxins

Abstract

An international inquiry was held in 2002/2003 on worldwide limits and regulations for mycotoxins, under contract with the Food and Agriculture Organization. The survey has shown that, by the end of 2003, more than 100 countries (covering>90% of the world's inhabitants) had specific regulations or detailed guidelines for mycotoxins. Mycotoxins for which currently (proposed) limits and regulations exist include the naturally occurring aflatoxins, aflatoxin M₁, agaric acid, deoxynivalenol, diacetoxyscirpenol, the fumonisins B₁, B₂ and B₃, HT-2 toxin, ochratoxin A, patulin, phomopsins, sterigmatocystin, T-2 toxin and zearalenone. Insight will be provided in the mycotoxin regulatory situations in Africa, Asia/Oceania, Europe, Latin America and North America. Overviews will be given about limits that exist for the most regulated mycotoxins. Comparing the situations in 1995 (year of the last worldwide inquiry) and 2003 it appears that, at present, more mycotoxins are regulated in more commodities and products, whereas tolerance limits generally remain the same or tend to decrease. Regulations have become more diverse with newer requirements regarding official procedures for sampling and analytical methodology. At the same time, several regulations have been harmonised between countries belonging to economic communities, or they are in some stage of harmonisation. Nevertheless the regulatory requirements remain substantially different across many countries.