Cereal Chem 52:603 - 610.  |  VIEW ARTICLE
Aflatoxin Occurrence in 1973 Corn at Harvest. I. A Limited Survey in the Southeastern U.S.

E. B. Lillehoj, W. F. Kwolek, G. M. Shannon, O. L. Shotwell, and C. W. Hesseltine. Copyright 1975 by the American Association of Cereal Chemists, Inc. 

Freshly harvested corn (18% moisture average) from the 1973 crop was examined for Aspergillus flavus- induced bright greenish-yellow (BGY) fluorescence and for aflatoxin. The survey was carried out in a limited area (2000 square miles) of northeastern South Carolina. A total of 297 10-lb samples of shelled corn were collected; 184 samples were collected at field sites, and 113 at elevator delivery points during harvest. Corn samples were dried to 13% moisture, or below, within 6 hr (mean time) after collection. Of the samples, 216 exhibited BGY fluorescence in whole and ground fractions, and 94 of the samples contained aflatoxin B1 above 20 ppb. The results show that aflatoxin contamination of the corn occurred prior to harvest. Preliminary observations indicated a relation between insect damage and presence of the toxin. However, a clear cause-effect association between insect activity and A. flavus infection was not established.