Mycotoxin occurrence in poultry feed and feed ingredients

Authors: Pokoo-Aikins, Anthony; Mitchell, Trevor; Read, Quentin; Shanmugasundaram, Revathi; Glenn, Anthony

Submitted to: Journal of Applied Poultry Research
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 4/15/2026
Publication Date: 4/16/2026
Citation: Pokoo-Aikins, A., Mitchell, T.R., Read, Q.D., Shanmugasundaram, R., Glenn, A.E. 2026. Mycotoxin occurrence in poultry feed and feed ingredients. Journal of Applied Poultry Research. Volume 35, Issue 3. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.japr.2026.100729.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.japr.2026.100729

Interpretive Summary: Keeping poultry feed safe is very important. Special steps are taken to make sure the feed chickens eat does not harm them. Mycotoxins are harmful chemicals made by certain molds. When chickens eat feed with mycotoxins, they may eat less, grow slower, get sick more easily, have trouble fighting disease, and even die. Sometimes, more than one kind of mycotoxin can be found in the feed, which can make the problem worse. This study checked how often and how many types of mycotoxins were found in chicken feed and its ingredients. The feed/ingredients tested included corn, soybeans, soybean meal, broiler feed, and layer feed. Out of 572 samples, 86% had fumonisin, 45% had deoxynivalenol, 36% had zearalenone, and 10% had aflatoxin. All the corn and feed had at least one type of mycotoxin. Many samples had more than one mycotoxin: 34% had one, 25% had two, and 30% had three. The most common combinations were fumonisin and deoxynivalenol together and all three (fumonisin, deoxynivalenol, and zearalenone) together. The amount of each mycotoxin was different depending on the type of feed. It is important to test feed and ingredients for mycotoxins before feeding them to chickens.

Technical Abstract: Feed safety is critical in poultry production. As a result, mechanisms are normally put in place to make sure that feed is safe for poultry. Mycotoxins are secondary metabolites that are produced by fungi which can, when consumed, result in issues including reduced appetite, suppressed growth, decreased feed efficiency, compromised immune systems, predisposition to secondary infections, poor production performance and mortality. Co-contamination of mycotoxins has been widely reported to exert negative synergistic effects as well. The objective of this study was to assess the prevalence and types of mycotoxin co-contamination levels in poultry feed and feed ingredients. Samples were analyzed for mycotoxin levels using HPLC/MS-MS: corn (n=335), soybeans (n=60), soybean meal (n=44), broiler feed (n=64), and layer feed (n=68). Of the 572 total samples, 86% had fumonisin (FUM), 45% had deoxynivalenol (DON), 36 % had zearalenone (ZEA), and 10% had aflatoxin (AFLA). All corn and feed samples were contaminated with at least one mycotoxin. Results show that mycotoxin co-contamination seems to be very common, with 34% of the total samples tested found to be contaminated with one mycotoxin, 25% with 2 mycotoxins, and 30% contaminated with 3 mycotoxins. The combination of DON + FUM made up the majority of the dual contaminations, and DON + FUM + ZEA made up the majority of the triple contaminations. Statistical differences were observed between concentrations of a given mycotoxin across different sample types. It is important for ingredients and finished feeds to be tested for mycotoxins before feeding them to poultry.