Risk assessment of fumonisin B1 in the Netherlands

Abstract

Fumonisine B1 is een mycotoxine, dat kan worden gevormd door bepaalde Fusarium schimmels. Het toxine wordt vooral in mais (-producten) aangetroffen, maar het kan ook voorkomen in tarwe (-producten). De inname van fumonisine B1 in de Nederlandse populatie is geschat door fumonisine B1 concentraties in voedingsmiddelen te combineren met voedselconsumptiegegevens. Uit de (beperkte) gegevens bleek dat tarwe de belangrijkste innamebron (73%) is van fumonisine B1. De 99e percentielwaarde (0,38 ug/kg lichaamsgewicht/dag bij een "worst case scenario") is veel lager dan de toelaatbare inname (2 ug/kg lichaamsgewicht/dag). Daarom vormt de huidige inname van fumonisine B1 in Nederland geen merkbaar gezondheidsrisico.

Fumonisin B1 is a mycotoxin that can be produced by certain Fusarium species. The toxin is found, in particular, in maize and maize products, but occurrence in boeth wheat and wheat products, and rice and rice products, has also been reported. The intake of fumonisin B1 by the population in the Netherlands was estimated in an exposure assessment using data on concentrations of fumonisin B1 in different food products combined with the consumption rate of these products. From the (limited) results summarized here, wheat was found to be the main contributor (73%) to the total fumonisin B1 intake. Since the 99th percentile of the lifelong-average intake (0.38 ug/kg bw per day as estimated in a worst case scenario) in considerably lower than the tolerable daily intake (2 ug/kg bw per day), the current dietary intake of fumonisin B1 in the Netherlands is concluded as posing no appreciable health risk.