Mycotoxins in US distiller's dried grains with solubles

摘要

During the corn-to-ethanol production process, approximately two-thirds of the grain, mainly starch, is fermented by yeast to produce ethanol and carbon dioxide, neither of which would contain mycotoxins if contaminated corn was used. However, the remaining co-product, distiller's dried grains with solubles (DDGS), could potentially contain a higher concentration of any mycotoxin that was present in the grain prior to fermentation. The increased level of a given mycotoxin in DDGS was reported to be approximately three times as high as the level in the grain. The tremendous growth in the fuel-ethanol industry has been accompanied by concomitant growth in the production of DDGS, and the potential for increased use of DDGS as animal feed is great. As a result, more attention has been paid to the prevalence and levels of mycotoxins in DDGS.