engleski

Mycotoxin hazad in traditional meat products

Mycotoxins are chemical contaminants that persist in foodstuffs and accumulate in the body causing severe human health impairments coming as a result of contaminated food consumption. These substances can be present in different products of animal origin through the carryover effect, including meat, offal, and meat products, should the animals be exposed to contaminated feed. The second contamination pathway are contaminated spices used in the TMP production. During ripening, the surface of traditional meat products (TMPs), such as dry-cured meat products and dry-fermented sausages, becomes overgrown with moulds, primarily those of the Penicillium and the Aspergillus genera, whose spores mostly come from the ripening chambers’ surroundings. The overgrowth is usually enhanced by ripening longevity and traditional production environment in which microbiological filters and pneumatic barriers are rarely used, so that air temperature and relative humidity are virtually uncontrollable. Despite of the favourable impact of superficial moulds on TMPs’ sensorial quality, it is not uncommon that they produce mycotoxins as secondary metabolites, especially in uncontrolled rural household environments and in case of external casing damaging, which facilitates the diffusion of mycotoxins into the product. Research on mycotoxins in TMPs conducted insofar has mostly been focused on ochratoxin A (OTA) and aflatoxin B1 (AFB1), while the knowledge on citrinin (CIT), sterigmatocystin (STC) and cyclopiazonic acid (CPA) prevalence is still insufficient. The aim of this study was to determine the mycotoxins mentioned above in 160 TMP samples produced in four different Croatian climatic regions during a two-year period. For this purpose, confirmatory multi-mycotoxin liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) was implemented. Mycotoxins AFB1 and CIT were not detected in any of the analysed TMPs, while STC, OTA and CPA were determined in the following respective concentration ranges: 0.1 - 3.9 µg/kg, 0.2 - 3.0 µg/kg, and 3.1 - 280.0 µg/kg. The highest STC and OTA concentrations were found in dry-fermented sausages from Northern Croatia, while the highest CPA concentration was found in dry-fermented products from Eastern Croatia. OTA and STC were most frequently found in dry-fermented sausages, while CPA was equally represented in sausages and dry-cured meat products that generally ripen longer. In order to produce safe meat products and protect consumer health, it is necessary to conduct further research to identify conditions that favour mycotoxin contamination of these products, especially that with CPA.

mycotoxins, traditional meat products, carryover effect, surface moulds

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