natural-products-in-plant-pest-management

2 Plant Products in the Control ofMycotoxins and MycotoxigenicFungi on Food CommoditiesSONIA MARÍN, VICENTE SANCHIS AND ANTONIO J. RAMOSFood Technology Department, Lleida University, Lleida, SpainAbstractMycotoxins are naturally occurring secondary metabolites of several toxigenic fungithat contaminate the whole food chain, from agricultural products, through to humanconsumption. Restrictions imposed by the food industries and regulatory agencies onthe use of some synthetic food additives have led to a renewed interest in searchingfor alternatives, such as natural antimicrobial compounds, particularly those derivedfrom plants. This chapter summarizes recent work on the antifungal activity of plantproducts and their potential for use as food additives. During the past two decadesmany publications have dealt with the inhibition of mycotoxigenic species by naturalplant products. Most of them showed the high efficacy of such products as antifungals.Their final application to food products is, however, still in its infancy. Thereasons for this are: (i) different origin, varieties and extraction methods of plantproducts result in essential oils and oleoresins that are widely varied in composition,preventing a direct extrapolation of results, unless experiments are carried out usingpure components of these essential oils and oleoresins; (ii) plant products should beapplied in such a way and at a concentration that does not affect sensorial quality offood products. Most in vitro studies used high concentrations of plant extracts anddirect contact as the screening technique, so the application of these extracts to foodshas not always been successful; and (iii) safety issues should be addressed prior to thewidespread application of such extracts.2.1 Mycotoxins in FoodsMycotoxins are naturally occurring secondary metabolites of several toxigenicfungi that contaminate the whole food chain, from agriculturalproducts such as peanuts and other nuts, fruits and dried fruits, and ultimatelyare consumed by man. These toxins can be produced in the field duringthe growth of the fungus on the crop or later, as a result of substandardhandling or storage. Animal-derived foods such as milk, cheese and meatcan be other sources of mycotoxins, if animals have been given contaminated© CAB International 2011. Natural Products in Plant Pest Management(ed. N.K. Dubey) 21