BIOMIN Mycotoxin Survey in US Corn Silage: July 2021 Update
Our July 2021 update from the annual Biomin® PROcheck mycotoxin survey comprising 78 samples of corn silage is here.
02.07.2021US Silage Report
Each sample was tested for 6 major mycotoxin groups of:
A-Trichothecenes (A-Trich): T-2, HT-2, Neosolaniol, Diacetoxyscirpenol
B-Trichothecenes (B-Trich): Deoxynivalenol (DON/Vomitoxin), Acetyl-deoxynivalenol, Nivalenol, Fusarenon X
Fumonisins (FUM): B1, B2, B3
Zearalenone (ZEN)
Aflatoxins (Afla): B1, B2, G1, and G2
Ochratoxin A (OTA)
Summary
Mycotoxins can occur throughout the whole corn plant, not just the grain. Therefore, this corn silage report will focus on detail specific to mycotoxin occurrence and contamination of this important feedstuff. The report will be refreshed with new data every quarter as corn silage samples are received and analyzed.
The survey results represent samples sent in for surveillance testing only and does not include any sample submitted following clinical signs. Below we discuss preliminary trends of each of these feed ingredients regarding mycotoxin prevalence and contamination levels.
USA Corn Silage
- 78 corn silage samples were tested
- 97% of samples were positive for at least one mycotoxin, vs. 97% in 2019
- 61% of samples had more than one mycotoxin, vs. 52% in 2019
- Average contamination levels:
Mycotoxins | 2020 | 2019 |
A-Trichothecenes | 10% | <1% |
B-Trichothecenes | 99% | 97% |
Fumonisins | 24% | 4% |
Zearalenone | 32% | 41% |
Aflatoxins | 0% | 0% |
Ochratoxin A | 0% | 0% |
- Overall, the mycotoxin contamination in 2020 corn silage appears to be relatively similar in comparison to 2019 corn silage with B-Trich levels holding steady, lower occurrence of ZEN, but A-Trich and FUM are elevated.