Ensiling and presence of aflatoxin M1 in cow’s milk

The main goal of ensiling plants is preservation their nutritional value, as close as possible to the nutritional value they have in the form of fresh green plants. The technology of ensiling is a primary microbial process in which lactic acid bacteria are crucially important to protect energy content and prevent silo mass from the development of harmful microorganisms. The main points of risk are the selection of the correct stage of maturity of the plant for ensiling, the rapid squeezing of air inside the plant mass in the silo, and the correct covering. Changes in the silo mass occur practically as soon as the mass of plants is transferred from the field to the prepared silo object. The direction and intensity of the change depend on several factors, but mostly on those that condition the successful development of lactic acid fermentation, such as moisture in the nutrient, anaerobic environment, carbohydrate content, and temperature. These factors enable the conditions in which the desired microorganisms will dominate during the fermentation of the plant mass and obtain quality silage with high nutritional value. Contamination with undesirable microbes and chemical agents is one of the major problems in silage production. To minimize the aflatoxin contamination in crop plants, various physical, chemical, and biological methods, and breeding and genetic engineering approaches, have been used to reduce its level below the recommended one.