Livelab

Seed Moulds Testing...

...potential mycotoxin causing moulds

It is a known fact now that some strains of say, fusarium, will cause DON whilst others perhaps will not. The chief culprits in the fusarium species are f. graminearum, f. culmorum and f. oxysporum. Our new seed package offers anaysis for the main microbiological mould organisms that are responsible for causing the mycotoxins which are becoming a bigger issue in UK grown commodities. Drilling seed infected with Aspergillus sp. or Penicillium sp. or indeed Fusarium sp. will significantly increase the chance that the crop will fail mycotoxin intake tests. By having your seed tested, and knowing what you are drilling you are protecting yourself against this risk.

Background to the testing

The rapid mycotoxin tests are vulnerable to so many factors that may affect analysis. Mycotoxins exist in very high concentrations in single grains interspersed within the heap in storage. Sampling is therefore prone to large variability since the number of these grains collected can clearly vary. The rapid tests in use vary, and whilst the results across the methods may not vary significantly, these tests contain a high number of transferral stages where error can occur. User error is therefore a factor. Internal Quality Control (IQC) and External Proficiency testing of these methods is poor.

Microbiology is a more reliable way of identifying whether the causes of the toxins are present. There are two enrichment stages in our moulds test and so the test is less susceptible to variation in the case of "hotspots" in the heap as any organism present will be enriched significantly. Transferral error in microbiology is rare and should not occur at all given a good aseptic technique. Our trained microbiologist has experience of conducting trials work with all species of Fusarium, Aspergillus and Penicillium and is perfectly placed to conduct these tests. IQC is excellent in microbiology using positive and negative controls of the species concerned. External ring testing is not always available for some of these species.

About Mycotoxins

The toxins caused by the following moulds are as follows:

FUSARIUM Sp.	PENICILLIUM Sp.	ASPERGILLUS Sp.
Deoxynivalenol (DON)	PR Toxin	Aflatoxin
Zearalenone (ZEAR)	Patulin	Ochratoxin
T-2	Penicillic Acid
Fumonisins	Mycophenolic Acid
Fusaric Acid

Our Service

We offer a seed or grain testing service aimed at identifying the chief causes of the mycotoxins. We will isolate and identify any of the above moulds that may be present in your sample. If you have had a problem in the past or are worried about your storage, then get your grain tested. Knowing about the presence of the specific moulds that can cause mycotoxins will put you in a position to control your storage more effectively and will give you an indication of what is behind the intake test results for DON or ZEAR. Knowing your crop will put you in a strong position should a rejection occur.

Cost

Fusarium sp.	£35
Aspergillus sp.	£28
Penicillium sp.	£35
All 3 above	£90

Prices excluding VAT.