Mycotoxigenic Fungi and Mycotoxins in Animal Feed in South American Countries

Abstract

The animal feed industry is an integral and growing segment of the food supply chain in Latin-American countries. It supplies the necessary feed ingredients to produce healthy animals, which provide food protein and energy that are essential to human beings. Pre- and post-harvest contamination of food and feed crops by mycotoxigenic fungi is a common problem. Although there are geographic and climatic differences in the production and occurrence of mycotoxins, exposure to these substances is worldwide (Kuiper-Goodman 2004). The development of modern agricultural methods together with large-scale processing has increased the problem, resulting in both acute diseases called mycotoxicoses, and chronic conditions, often recognized as situations involving mycotoxins impair the health of the animal (Binder et al. 2007).