Mycotoxin accumulation during the malting of wheat and barley
grain causes millions of dollars in annual losses for the U.S. malting and
brewing industry. While the US malting industry has strict standards to avoid
even minimally contaminated grain, the high moisture low temperature conditions
during malting are ideal for residual Fusarium graminearum proliferation
and production of deoxynivalenol (DON). This presentation discusses the
potential use of biofumigant treatments from plant derived metabolites to reduce
grain Fusarium contamination and mycotoxin production during malting. Defatted
seed meals from three glucosinolate containing members of the Brassicaceae
Family: Brassica juncea, Brassica carinata and Thlaspi arvense
were utilized to fumigate contaminated wheat and barley. Upon wetting,
myrosinase enzymes are activated in the seed meal and convert stable
glucosinolate compounds into highly volatile isothiocyantes which can be used
for fumigation. Furthermore, these naturally occurring plant defense compounds
are US-FDA approved food additives known for their antimicrobial activity. We showed
that the concentration of allyl isothiocyanate, the predominate compound emitted
by wetted seed meals, caused complete inhibition of Fusarium graminearum
growth without inhibiting wheat or barley germination. Fumigation of naturally
contaminated wheat and barley under storage conditions significantly reduced
the percent of infected kernels without affecting germination. Fumigation with Brassica
juncea seed meal of contaminated barley during germination reduced DON
contamination by 27% and increased barley germination success by 9%. This
research provides producers and maltsters with an organic biofumigation
treatment method for wheat and barley grain that can reduce grain Fusarium
contamination and the likelihood of mycotoxin accumulation during the malting
process.