Ontario Agriculture

The network for agriculture in Ontario, Canada

KnowMycotoxins.com makes mycotoxins a hot topic in 2010

In the past two and a half years, the first mycotoxin information website, www.KnowMycotoxins.com, has gone online in six languages (English, Portuguese, Chinese, Spanish, Russian and Hungarian) and established itself as a reliable educational source of information about mycotoxins.

Last week, KnowMycotoxins.com has also launched a new page featuring a Mycotoxin Short Course with video lectures addressing key challenges related to identifying and dealing with mycotoxins: regulations, sampling, the most simple and sophisticated ways of testing, and the difficulties that come with them.

A major focus on mycotoxins has taken place in 2010 in the face of the poor quality of the 2009 corn crop, which impacted not only the domestic markets, but also countries that import grain in Latin America.

Last December, Dr. Trevor Smith, University of Guelph, emphasized “This fall has all the ingredients for a mess of molds and mycotoxins. A late harvest, wet weather and high moisture corn have all contributed to the recent reports of moldy corn across the Midwest”. There are currently indications that the 2010 wheat crop will be affected with fusarium mycotoxins due to the weather patterns.

In addition to its educational content that includes the impact of mycotoxins on different animal species, mycotoxin regulations and mycotoxin levels around the world, KnowMycotoxins.com also features an interactive series of videos where specialists from around the world show the different mycotoxins hotspots at the farm level. These videos are also available on the “KnowMycotoxins Videos” channel on YouTube.com.

“Mycotoxins are now recognized as a genuine global threat to the feed industry. In the past two years, mycotoxin issues in the equine and pet industries have also been highlighted by the media. The decision to expand the features of www.KnowMycotoxins.com reflects this reality,” said Alltech’s Global Mycosorb Manager, Dr. Jules Taylor-Pickard.

www.KnowMycotoxins.com was first launched in English in July 2007. The website, which was developed in conjunction with global animal health and nutrition company, Alltech, aims to educate the various market segments in the animal feed industry which are continuously challenged on how to overcome the repercussions of mycotoxins in animal feed.

The website targets all levels in the industry to ensure that they are adequately equipped to identify and deal with the growing mycotoxin issue.

For further information please log on to www.KnowMycotoxins.com or contact your local Alltech representative.

Views: 82

Comment

You need to be a member of Ontario Agriculture to add comments!

Join Ontario Agriculture

Agriculture Headlines from Farms.com Canada East News - click on title for full story

U.S. Opens Door to Additional Beef Imports in Bid to Lower Ground Beef Prices

U.S. has unveiled a temporary measure allowing additional imported beef into the United States without higher tariff penalties.

Crop Report for the Period August 11 to 17, 2026

Harvest progress remained slow last week, reaching four per cent complete as scattered rain showers and thunderstorms moved across the province. While the moisture was welcome in some regions, early-morning humidity shortened harvest windows and created poor desiccation conditions. Producers noted that warmer temperatures are needed to help advance crop maturity. Rainfall was variable across the province last week. Some areas reported receiving significant precipitation from scattered showers and thunderstorms, while others recorded trace or no rainfall, resulting in uneven moisture conditions across crop districts. The highest rainfall was reported in the Browning area, with 115 millimetres (mm) of rain, followed by the Enniskillen area with 106 mm and the Coalfields area with 102 mm. The Reciprocity and Meadow Lake areas reported 73 mm. Localized showers resulted in slight improvements to topsoil moisture conditions across the province. Cropland topsoil moisture is: 2 per cent s

Hail, harvest & inspection strips

With harvest fast approaching in some areas of the province, producers with hail-damaged crops are starting to wonder if Agriculture Financial Services’ (AFSC) claims adjusters will make it to their farm before they need to start harvest. “Our adjusters are working hard to assess hail damage,” said George Kueber, AFSC Claims Adjusting manager. “This year’s storm season is a bit unprecedented. We had two large scale hail events back-to-back on July 4 and 5. We haven’t had claims volumes like this since 2016. “We can’t get to everyone immediately,” said Kueber, adding that there are 2,951 outstanding hail inspections as of August 18. “We prioritize our work based on a number of factors and with harvest getting underway across the province, we will be asking clients to leave representative strips.” Producers with hail-damaged acres can harvest before the crop is assessed, provided they contact their preferred AFSC branch office for approval to leave inspection strips before starting a

Making memories with Meals in the Field

It started over breakfast. And by the time it was over, George and Gail Slusarczyk had welcomed a circle of their friends to their farm to share a meal, watch some live entertainment, and to catch up with one another. “I filled out the form over breakfast one day and submitted it, and walked away from the idea to never think of it again,” explained Gail, during a recent phone conversation. “Then one day, he (George) came in the house and said, ‘We’re getting company.’ And I’m going, ‘Who?’” The answer was the 840 CFCW Meals in the Field crew, including Jackie Rae Greening, Stella Stevens and Dan Davidson, as well as Agriculture Financial Services (AFSC) team members. In addition, Stawnichy’s Mundare Sausage brought a Ukrainian feast, and the Slusarczyks received prizes from Rig Hand Distillery, AFSC, and Meridian Manufacturing. George and Gail, who farm northwest of Warburg, had won the last spot for 2025 in the popular harvest season contest, and they could now invite friends and

Bertha Armyworms, Weeds and Sclerotinia

Bertha armyworm is a native pest so it has lots of natural enemies. If berthas are below thresholds, it may be best to avoid spraying and let these beneficials do their work. A few important beneficials:  –tachinid fly  –parasitic wasp (Banchus flavescens)  –fungus  –virus Among these beneficials, the virus is mostly likely to bring down an outbreak cycle. Infected berthas climb to the top of plants, go all gooey, and rain down virus on the worms below. It can spread fast. If a canola field has a lot of berthas on the pods, make sure they’re actually eating. A lot of them may be dead. Bertha loves quinoa (and a few weeds) Why are some fields overrun with berthas while nearby fields have so few? Timing of canola flowering and the attraction of alternate host plants (weeds in the crop) are possible factors. For example, fields with a lot of kochia, lamb's-quarters, wild mustard or quinoa could be more attractive to egg-laying bertha armyworm moths. (Quinoa is not that common but bert

© 2026   Created by Darren Marsland.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service