Here's some info I got from the bunny group I'm on about mycotoxins and freezing

[Guest guest]

I remembered them talking about this way before I knew I was being

killed off with mold but this is interesting and also explains about

the freezing of the nuts/seeds I have and other things. It is ironic

I learned about mycotoxins thru bunny feeds and rescuing bunnies and

all along I was being poisoned by myco's myself. I figure all the

food I fed my bunnies and cats before remediation got contaminated

even more if it had any on it before arriving here. Same with my

food.... I am so glad I discovered the mold at my house and work and

remediated and got out of the toxic workplace!!

This may explain the moldy icemakers too when the ice melts in our

drinks. Yuck!!

Mycotoxins growing ?

Can this be a confusion ? Mycotoxins are not able to multiply/grow by

themselves, they need an organism to produce them: fungi. The relation

between fungi and production of mycotoxins is complicated, growth of

fungi

does not automatically imply production or increase of production of

mycotoxins.

In the case of Fusarium (produces the following toxins: deoxynivalenol

(DON), zearalenone, T-2 Toxin, and fumonisin):

- at room temperature, the fungus grows rapidly but barely produces

mycotoxins

- at near-freezing temperature, the fungus barely grows but produces

large

amounts of mycotoxins.

In the case of Aspergillus (aflatoxin):

- the fungi lives best in dry and hot conditions.

- production of the aflatoxin is related to the hot temperature

Penicillium (produces ochratoxin) has other conditions.....

I have never heard that freezing is able to kill a mycotoxin, if this

would

be the case, we would probably have got rid of the problems by now.

No,

actually the idea to freeze and thaw pellets worries me. If the danger

exists prior to freezing, it will not be eliminated, probably might

get

worse rather then better. Indeed, if (live) fungi are present in

pelleted

food of forage, some will start to produce spores upon deterioration

of the

environmental conditions. Those spores are extremely resistant and

will

survive, till better conditions, that is after thawing.

The fungi itself might not be killed by the freezing, just put asleep

for a

while.You thus end up with much more fungi (the one that survived and

new

ones that comes from the germinated spore) in the food than ever

before,

more fungi = possible increased production of toxins.

Production of mycotoxins is related to a stressed fungus (stress =

changes

in the environment, such as temp.). I could well imagine that a

waking-up

fungus starts a high production of aflatoxin, as a reaction to the

stress

AND in order to protect its own environment, killing all other living

organism around itself.

One of the most effective way to prevent mycotoxin development is

keeping

the food under reduced oxygen atmosphere. This is of course not

possible at

home, unless you start to buy N2 gas bottles.... Additives are

generally

added to pelleted food to keep the level low, those additives can be

ammonia, propionic acid, sometimes also enzymes. They do not prevent

mycotoxin production but inhibit effectively the growth of fungi in

the

food.

Another effective trick is to keep humidity below 13%