The material investigated in 2009–2011 were 203 samples of maize grain. The aim of the study was to evaluate the content of the mycotoxins: deoxynivalenol (DON), nivalenol (NIV), T-2 toxin, HT-2 toxin, zearalenone (ZEA) and fumonisins (FUM) using a high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with MS/MS (tandem mass spectrometry) detection and mycological analysis of selected samples. Identified species of fungi confirmed that the maize grain was dominated by moulds of the toxicogenic potential. All the analyzed samples revealed the presence of Fusarium mycotoxins with varying level in each year of the study.
Fusarium, due to its toxic properties, has become the fungus with steadily growing significance in Poland as well as worldwide. It is a major agent of fusariosis of cereal ears, the disease responsible for great economic loses, most commonly occuring in wheat, yet also dangerous for rye and barley. Fusarium contamination of cereal does not only lead to harvest decrease and quality drop but more importantly, as a result of its ability to produce secondary metabolites – mycotoxins, to toxicity of cereal produce. In the analysed samples of wheat, triticale, rye and barley grains harvested in 2011–2012, high levels of Fusarium contamination were detected. However, the products harvested in 2011 showed much higher average contamination with the general number of moulds as well as those of the Fusarium genera. Mycotoxicological analysis revealed that wheat and barley contained the highest amount of mycotoxins, respectively.