Co-occurrence of mycotoxins in corn samples from the Northern region of Paraná State, Brazil

Natural mycoflora and co-occurrence of fumonisins and aflatoxins were evaluated in 300 freshly-harvested corn samples (2003 and 2004 crops) collected at two points of the production chain in the Northern region of Paraná State, Brazil. In the 2003 crop, fumonisins were detected in 100% of samples and the mean levels were 2.54μg/g in the reception and 3.12μg/g in the pre-drying samples. On the other hand, in the 2004 crop fumonisins were detected in 98.9% and 95% of the reception and pre-drying samples, respectively. The mean levels were 1.31μg/g in the reception, and 1.36μg/g in the pre-drying samples. Aflatoxins were not detected in 92% of the samples analysed. The maximum probable daily intake (PDIM) estimated for the Brazilian population (0.95μg/kg body weight/day) is below the tolerable daily intake of 2.0μg/kg body weight/day for fumonisin B1.