Mycotoxins in Cheese

Mycotoxins are low molecular weight secondary metabolites produced by filamentous fungi which are found in cheese primarily as a result of either indirect contamination, resulting from the manufacture of cheese from animals which have ingesting contaminated feed or directly resulting from mold growth on cheese. Although cheese is generally regarded as an unfavorable matrix for mycotoxin production, potentially hazardous toxins have been found in cheese including aflatoxin M₁, sterigmatocystin, and ochratoxin A. Other mycotoxins reported to contaminate mold-ripened cheese include PR toxin, roquefortine, patulin, and mycophenolic acid. Despite this, the overall levels of mycotoxins reported to be present in cheese are generally quite low. This coupled with the fact that large quantities of contaminated cheese are unlikely to be eaten, and that as yet there is no evidence of human toxicity resulting from the consumption of mold-ripened cheese, suggests that they are not a hazard to human health.