An overview on the history and management of Mycotoxins

The overall presence of mycotoxins and the incidence of individual toxins in regional grain sources has become a regular part of annual harvest reports and feed related quality control programs. Within the past decade, research has largely become the purview of commercial entities with the goal of developing analytical technologies for individual mycotoxins and their metabolites, prediction models for the occurrence of toxins and mycotoxin mitigation products. In practice, however, rapid tests on incoming ingredients sometimes in tandem with more definitive lab analysis and clinical symptoms of mycotoxicosis during posting sessions are still the predominant approaches to mycotoxin awareness. One goal of this symposium was to introduce the audience to a brief history of mycotoxicosis which is still a relatively new field of study (first documented case in the early 1960′s) and this is addressed in this initial overview. A second goal of the symposium was to have speakers discuss different research approaches to mycotoxin awareness/mitigation and how combinations of common toxins, below their individual “threshold” values, could negatively impact “gut health” in commercial broilers and turkeys.