IMPACT OF PURE FUMONISIN B-1 ON VARIOUS METABOLIC PARAMETERS AND CARCASS QUALITY OF GROWING-FINISHING SWINE - PRELIMINARY FINDINGS

Mycotoxin fumonisin B-1 (FB1) is a common contaminant of corn and a ca usative agent of different animal and human diseases. An experiment wa s conducted to assess the impact of pure FB1 on carcass quality of gro wing-finishing swine. Pigs were fed diets containing 0, 0.11, 0.33 and 1.0 mg FB1 kg(-1) (ppm) until market weight. Although performance cha racteristics were not different among the respective treatments, an in crease in feed consumption variability was observed between weeks 3 an d 9 for the 1 ppm FB1 fed pigs as compared with controls. The same ani mals showed an increased variability in carcass characteristics, in pa rticular in the fat content of loin and ham. The estimated lean yield tended to decrease with increasing dose, bur a high standard deviation abolished treatment differences. An elevated cholesterol value at the end of the experiment for the 1 ppm FB1 fed pigs suggested a disrupti on of lipid metabolism. No other significant (P > 0.06) changes were o bserved. We conclude that a diet containing 1 ppm FBI could have a det rimental effect on the carcass quality of a market pig and be a source of a monetary loss to the producer.