Approximately 2 billion tonnes of cereals are produced each year: products that need to be secured before moving on to the storage phase. In fact, the moisture level that cereals have at harvest time must be taken into account and lowered to eliminate the risk of mycotoxin production. Preventing mycotoxins by adopting an appropriate post-harvest strategy therefore minimises the risk of loss of production and the value of the harvest, the fruit of months of effort and sacrifice.
Ensuring that each type of cereal has the correct moisture level – 14% for maize and 12% for rice, for example – can prevent the growth and proliferation of bacteria and fungi, such as aflatoxins, which contaminate the harvest and compromise its quality.
In this article, the Mecmar team tells you how to prevent aflatoxins – particular species of mycotoxins in cereals – from altering and damaging your production.
Cereal mycotoxins: what are they and what types exist?
These are harmful substances that develop on food for human and animal consumption. There are different types: aflatoxins, ochratoxins and trichothecenes are just a few examples. Mycotoxins proliferate in plant substrates contaminating cereals, especially during storage.
But what are the factors that most influence the formation of mycotoxins in cereals? At the forefront are climatic conditions, temperature and moisture content of the grain. These are the three main components that make the product more ‘vulnerable’ to mycotoxin attack.
With this in mind, it is crucial that the feed your herd is fed meets precise food safety standards. In this way, you will keep your animals in good health: a guarantee of derived food products, such as meat and dairy products, that are not dangerous to humans.
How to avoid mycotoxins affecting the quality of your cereals?
The most delicate stage and the one to which most attention must be paid in order to avoid the proliferation of mycotoxins in cereals is the one following their harvest. If the grains have cracks or micro-lesions and humidity reaches (or worse exceeds) 15%, this creates the ideal conditions for aflatoxin contamination.
A particularly hot and humid environment also contributes to the formation and development of mycotoxins, which risk jeopardising the efforts made during the cultivation and harvesting of cereals. How, then, to prevent their degradation or germination?
Drying cereals immediately after harvesting will allow you to reduce the moisture content in the grain to a level no longer considered risky and thus store your harvest safely and securely. You will be sure that the stored product will retain all its quality, even for very long periods of time, without you having to worry about it.
At this point a further interesting scenario opens up for you. If you do not want to sell your cereals immediately after harvesting, you can still dry them and store them until they reach a sales price that you are happy with.
How to best dry your harvest and avoid mycotoxin formation in cereals
Decisive for optimal grain storage is being able to reduce the percentage of moisture retained in the kernels. Depending on the moisture level of the incoming grain, the air temperature used for drying varies from grain to grain depending on the end use. Typically, an air temperature of around 80-120°C is reached for fast and effective drying of maize.
In addition to preserving a high quality product, drying cereals results in an additional benefit for the farmer. Dried cereals are products that are not at risk of spoilage, so consider that you will have less loss, more value and profit from your harvest.
Crucial then is the cleaning of the grain to remove dust and impurities that could hinder the successful cereal grain drying and storage. Mecmar solutions are in fact designed to ensure that cereal products are not only correctly dried, but also clean.
Cleaning and drying of the grains takes place within the same multi-cereal machine: this optimises grain processing and treatment times, while guaranteeing the best quality of the products coming out of the dryer. Thanks to the possibility of using the same dryer for different types of grain, you can use the same machine in different seasons and recover the investment cost sooner.
Would you like to learn more? We recommend some interesting reading below:
- Crop drying: multi-grain solutions from Mecmar
- Mecmar mechanical dryer for rice and corn: discover Mecmar efficiency
- Antinutritional factor: how to eliminate it from legumes?
Would you like to receive more information on how our dryers enable you to better process your harvest and avoid the formation of mycotoxins in cereals? All you have to do is contact us: we are at your disposal to answer your questions and queries.
