Occurrence of ochratoxin A in Danish wheat and rye, 1992-99

Ochratoxin A concentrations in rye and wheat in Denmark for 1992-99 are reported. The results show that the concentration of ochratoxin A is higher in rye than in wheat for both conventionally and organically grown rye and wheat. The levels in organically grown rye are higher than in conventionally grown based on multiyear mean contents. However, the difference between the two groups of cereals has decreased since the Danish food-monitoring system for ochratoxin A was started in 1986; 2.0% of all samples exceeded the Danish maximum limit of 5 mug kg(-1) introduced in 1995. For rye samples, 3.2% exceeded the maximum limit, and for wheat samples, 0.5% exceeded the maximum limit.