Contaminated crops on farms could cost poultry organizations more than £150,000 (US$203,000) in losses annually, warns a new report examining mycotoxins, naturally occurring toxic compounds that frequently contaminate animal feeds.

Mycotoxin contamination is a widespread issue within poultry sectors globally, prompting Queen’s University Belfast researchers to investigate how these harmful chemicals can harm the environmental and economic sustainability of the global poultry industry due to feed contamination.

The presence of mycotoxins in animal feed presents a significant challenge for livestock farmers worldwide. This challenge is particularly poignant as poultry production is noted as one of the fastest-growing livestock industries.

Financial fallout 

Mycotoxins can hit profits and lead to food waste and food production declines, resulting in a reduction in poultry feed efficiency by up to 10%. The findings show that even very low levels of mycotoxins can increase the carbon footprint of poultry production by more than 8%.

Feed production is considered one of the largest contributors to livestock systems’ environmental footprint. Addressing mycotoxin contamination in feed crops like wheat, maize, and soybeans is important for achieving sustainable, low-carbon, and profitable poultry production globally.

The study comes amid increased demand for poultry meat and eggs. It is expected to propel significant changes in how the agri-food industry views low-level mycotoxin contamination in feeds.

Poultry production

The researchers note that the effects of mycotoxins on livestock health have been extensively studied, but comprehensive research quantifying their combined economic and environmental impacts remains limited.

This study addresses the research gap by integrating meta-analysis and life cycle assessment (LCA) to evaluate the potential consequences of broiler production using mycotoxin-contaminated feeds.

Professor Chris Elliott from the School of Biological Sciences and Institute for Global Food Security at Queen’s University Belfast, and the lead investigator of the study, says: “This study is extremely significant as it addresses an important research gap by evaluating the potential economic and environmental consequences of the rearing of chickens specifically for meat consumption using mycotoxin-contaminated feeds, a widespread issue globally.”

“The findings show that addressing mycotoxin contamination in feed crops such as wheat, maize, and soybean is important for achieving sustainable, low-carbon, and profitable poultry production.”

Professor Rudi Krska, from the School of Biological Sciences and Institute for Global Food Security at Queen’s and BOKU University, a co-author, adds: “This study will have a great impact and will likely propel important changes in how the agri-food industry will view low-level mycotoxin contamination in feeds.”

“These data are of substantial importance to the poultry industry, and we envisage that it will drive the economic and environmental sustainability of the world’s most widely consumed animal protein. We believe that farmers, consumers, and the planet will all benefit.”

The Belfast-based researchers collaborated with a multinational team from BOKU University, the Austrian Food Competence Centre FFoQSI, and dsm-firmenich Animal Nutrition & Health. 

Mycotoxin risk management

The research team used a broiler farm in the Benelux region as a model and found a 10.8 % reduction in feed utilization efficiency (p < 0.05) when birds consumed feeds contaminated with two or more EU-regulated mycotoxins (deoxynivalenol, zearalenone, fumonisin B1, ochratoxin A, and T-2/HT-2 toxin). 

For 100,000 birds, this inefficiency translated to 400 mt of additional feed annually, costing around €200,000 (US$227,480). 

Nineteen environmental footprint categories — including global warming potential, resource use, ecotoxicity, eutrophication, acidification, ozone depletion, and ionizing radiation — were analyzed to evaluate the environmental impacts of feed mycotoxin contamination.