Mycotoxin occurrence in beer produced in several European countries

The occurrence of ochratoxin A, trichothecenes, fumonisins and aflatoxins in a sample of 106 beers produced in several European countries, was investigated. Aflatoxins were not detected in any samples, whereas ochratoxin A, trichothecenes and fumonisins were found in a relatively high number of samples. Their presence was at low levels in all samples; however, some differences were observed between the European countries. As regards ochratoxin A, beer samples from southern Europe showed levels always lower than 0.040 µg l-1, while the samples from other European countries showed significantly higher values, up to 0.189 µg l-1 (P<0.001). For fumonisins, the levels of Italian beers were significantly higher compared to the samples from other countries (P=0.006).