ISSUE FOCUS 56 FEED & ADDITIVE MAGAZINE April 2023 “Success in the battle against mycotoxins is driven by developing informed and targeted plans that quickly identify and anticipate mycotoxin threat levels. Therefore, we advocate a targeted approach to mycotoxin mitigation – a strategy we have successfully implemented for over a decade.” MYCOTOXIN RISK AND MITIGATION MEASURES Clement Soulet Global Anti-Mycotoxin Agents Lead Cargill’s Animal Nutrition Business Mycotoxins, naturally occurring toxins from fungi, are one of the animal feed industry's biggest ongoing systemic threats. Found in raw feed ingredients, they can wreak havoc on animal health, performance and bottom lines. As a result, livestock farmers, feed formulators, and nutritionists need proactive risk management strategies to win the ongoing battle against mycotoxins. UNDERSTANDING RISK What's tricky is that symptoms of trouble might not be visible. For example, laying hens may not show physical health changes that would indicate the presence of mycotoxins. Yet, mycotoxins could be impacting their ability to produce eggs. Similarly, pigs that appear to be healthy could have a lower feed intake due to mycotoxins, resulting in a lower weight gain and lower farmer revenue. Therefore, even a couple of percentage point decreases in your animal's performance can directly impact your bottom line and output. Another reason waiting to see physical symptoms can be dangerous because it is typically expensive to reverse their impacts entirely if they do appear. Symptoms indicate the animal has been exposed to high levels of mycotoxins for a long time. By then, the mycotoxins have taken hold and will significantly impact the animal's health and performance. IDENTIFYING RISK Mycotoxin levels can vary by ingredient and region that can affect species differently. When calculating mycotoxin risk, there are three key considerations: 1. Contamination rate (% positive analyses with at least one mycotoxin), 2. Contamination level (analyzed mycotoxin concentration); and 3. Species sensitivity. It is important to note that with increased sampling and analyses for mycotoxins, it is likely that you will find more, so tapping into existing trends can be useful. Cargill regularly compiles more than 300,000 mycotoxin analyses each year from more than 135,000 raw material samples taken across nearly 150 global feed plants, farms, and ingredient storage locations. Cargill hosts the most comprehensive mycotoxin contamination database in the world, and you can get the complimentary 2022 Cargill World Mycotoxin Report from here.
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