ABSTRACT
The content of 13 A- and B-type trichothecenes, zearalenone, as well as α- and β-zearalenol was determined in products processed from raw maize by dry milling in an industrial plant. Two batches of samples were investigated derived from different lots of raw maize. Each of the toxins investigated was found in at least one of the samples analyzed, with up to 13 toxins co-occurring within one sample. For both batches, toxins were either not detected or their content was low in raw and tempered maize, grits, and two types of flour. Markedly higher concentrations were found in screenings, bran, germ, or germ meal. The results suggest a similar redistribution during dry milling of maize for the whole spectrum of Fusarium toxins analyzed. In germ oil, only 15-acetyldeoxynivalenol, zearalenone, HT-2 toxin, and T-2 toxin were detected due to the higher lipophilic properties of these substances compared with the other toxins found in the basing germ. This is the first time that the redistribution of a spectrum of 16 Fusarium toxins has been measured in a single dry-milling study.
