The occurrence of type A and B trichothecenes in Lithuanian cereals

Samples of winter wheat (n = 84), winter rye (46) and barley (29) were coll ected from the larger family farms and from partnerships in Lithuania just after the 1998 harvest. The number of samples collected from each region wa s proportional to the amount of grain produced in it. The levels of the Fus arium toxins deoxynivalenol (DON), 3-acetyl-DON, 15-acetyl-DON, nivalenol ( NIV), fusarenon-X (4-acetyl-NIV), T-2 toxin, HT-2 toxin, 4,5-diacetoxyscirp enol (DAS), 1,5-monoacetoxyscirpenol (MAS) and scirpentriol in the grain we re determined by gas chromatography with mass-selective detection (GC-MS). DON was most often detected in the wheat and rye samples and NIV in the bar ley samples. The concentrations found were lower than those causing acute o r chronic toxic effects in livestock or humans. No fusarenon-X or 15-acetyl -DON was detected, and only small amounts of other trichothecenes were pres ent. Climatic conditions in Lithuania in the summer of 1998 were slightly c ooler and wetter than the average for the 1992-1996 but were close to the n orm. Because the samples analysed were representative of grain produced for the market in seasons with normal weather, trichothecene contamination of grain from large family farms and partnerships would not be expected to be a problem in most years.