dsm-firmenich Receives FDA Approval of First U.S. Mycotoxin Degrading Ingredient, Shares Mycotoxin Survey Results

dsm-firmenich Animal Nutrition and Health — a global science-based company focused on nutrition, health and sustainable living — announced the FDA approval of a new enzyme, fumonisin esterase, and shared updates on their North America mycotoxin survey at a World Pork Expo press conference on June 9.

Paige Gott, Ph.D., dsm-firmenich mycotoxin and Hy•D® category manager, said fumonisin esterase is for the degradation of fumonisins present in swine feed, and this approval expands dsm-firmenich’s commitment to innovation in mycotoxin management.

“This is the first mycotoxin degrading ingredient to go through FDA’s Food Additive Petition (FAP) process and will be the first product ever to be approved for degrading fumonisins in feed in the U.S. market,” said Gott.

Gott also shared mycotoxin contamination trends in U.S. corn ingredients, focusing on the year-to-year changes across the country. “Among the corn samples tested in our annual survey, 90 percent of the samples were positive for mycotoxins in 2021, versus 88 percent in 2020,” said Gott. “We also identified that type B trichothecenes and Zearalenone increased in prevalence from 2020 to 2021, indicating an increased likelihood of exposure in herds and greater potential for negative effects arising on-farm.”

Lan Zheng, Ph.D., dsm-firmenich technical services manager, discussed why it’s imperative now — through an anticipated season of high corn prices — to make sure mycotoxins aren’t affecting swine feed performance. “Mycotoxins can have several negative outcomes to swine health and performance,” said Zheng. “From reproductive impairment to digestive disorders, decreased vaccine efficacy, and increased susceptibility to infections, it can be devastating to a swine operation. And with high corn prices, it’s imperative right now that feed is working without concern of performance-related losses.”

Gott shared how producers can implement a mycotoxin risk-management program on their operation. “Proper sampling and analysis are key to a comprehensive mycotoxin risk-management program. Mycotoxins are not evenly distributed throughout feed, leading to variation in exposure over time. Therefore, routine analysis can provide insights into the types and levels of mycotoxins animals are exposed to. With this information, it is possible to develop a customized mitigation strategy to address challenges on-farm.”