In late 2020, Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador called for a ban on imported genetically modified (GMO) corn and the use of the herbicide glyphosate. Mexico is the second largest importer of corn in the world after China, with 17 million tons imported every year. In 2022, 90% of those imports came directly from the United States, nearly all of which were genetically modified. This makes the US corn production industry vulnerable to the huge logistical and financial impacts of the decree, and the key player at the table in trade negotiations. In fact, many consider the decree to be a clear violation of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), an agreement signed in 2018 to promote fair and mutually beneficial trade in North America.

Originally set for enforcement on January 31, 2024, the global corn production industry has been watching anxiously as US and Mexico trade representatives are locked in debate. As the situation evolves, EnviroLogix wanted to provide an overview of what we know about the situation, the likely outcomes, and how the impacts could affect our customers.

The Original 2020 Decree – What Mexico is trying to protect

As it was written and endorsed by President Obrador, “…the main purpose of these measures is the protection of the right to health and a healthy environment, of native corn, of the milpa [traditional agriculture system], of biocultural wealth, of peasant communities, and of gastronomic heritage.”

There are over 60 native varieties of maize in Mexico, tracing back to the very beginning of agriculture 10,000 years ago. White corn is the primary crop grown in Mexico today and the main ingredient in tortillas, a vital national product. Protecting the lineage of these natural varieties of corn is framed as a public health issue within the decree.

The United States on the other hand, is mainly growing and exporting GMO yellow corn destined for animal feed or ethanol. Farmers north of the border see $5 billion at stake annually and  more than two decades of research supporting the efficacy and safety of GMO crops.

This debate positions biodiversity and cultural identity on one side, while on the other lies the very real supply and demand challenges of this staple crop. President Obrador is enjoying popular support, although his critics are quick to point out reality does not match the rhetoric.

2023 Revised Decree – Softening on some industries

Since its introduction in 2020, the potential for massive disruption has weighed heavily on the grain industry, with many outspoken opponents. On February 14^th, 2023, Mexico issued a revision to the decree in response to a challenge from the US Trade Representative (USTR) office.

With an aim towards clarity, the Ministry of Economy in Mexico stated that canola, soybeans, cotton, and other crops will not be subject to the new regulation, and corn used for animal feed or industrial use will not face a 2024 deadline. The total prohibition of GMO corn for human consumption remains firmly in place, but instead of a hard 2024 deadline, restrictions will be phased out over 3 years.

These revisions did little to appease National Corn Growers Association President Tom Haag, and propelled his statement calling the USMCA “a dead letter unless it’s enforced”.

The ban on glyphosate remains rigid and is the active subject of further legislation under a broad public health law proposal. On the ground in Mexico, glyphosate usage has been declining steadily and may be forced to a hard-stop next year.

Among other US complaints, the authorities in Mexico have not publicly included specific traits or acceptable percentage of GMO content for the industry to prepare new operational standards.

One of the key issues in the ongoing debate is the lack of specifics in President Obrador’s decree. A unilateral ban with terms like “biotechnology products” provide little guidance for the person accepting a railcar of white corn with 0.8% GMO content (acceptable as organic by the Non-GMO Project).

How will this affect the corn production industry in the US?

With seeds already in the soil for 2023, the stakes are rising, and many questions remain unanswered. What will US farmers plant next year? How will this affect daily operations across the supply chain?

If the decree is upheld, it will leave Mexico with a significant gap in production for 2024, and conversely leave the US with millions of tons of GMO corn to redirect. Long-term compliance will also require massive logistical changes for the corn production, storage, and transport industries to compete in the GMO space. From seed to stalk, train to tortilla, you name it, if you’re involved with corn production it may be time to prepare

What happens next?

As of March 2023, the Biden Administration is taking steps towards filing an official challenge to the USMCA. We will soon know if trade negotiations were successful or if the formal complaint will need to be advanced. US proponents continue to press from Mexico a science-based reasoning for the ban in-line with the USMCA agreement. The resolve in Mexico stands firmly behind maize and its natural genetic diversity, showcased by the past 25 years of restriction on the planting of GMO seed. While the likelihood of the decree being enacted as-is may be relatively low, global demand for non-GMO food continues to grow. Whether you are on one side of the fence, or one side of the border, these recent events bring to light a challenging issue for the grain industry.

Whether you’re already in the non-GMO game or considering a future shift, a critical component of maintaining an Identity Preserved grain program is testing. Rapid, on-site testing for inbound and outbound shipments, lab confirmation for certification and compliance, and data management for traceability and audit protection work together to keep your non-GMO program protected, documented, and moving. At EnviroLogix, we build diagnostic solutions specifically for the grain industry. If you have questions about what the Mexico GMO corn import ban could mean for your operations, or are interested in exploring testing options for non-GMO program support, now is a great time to reach out and start the conversation.

Rapid, ready & reliable

We get it. You’re under a lot of pressure to keep production at maximum volume. TotalTox is the new mycotoxin testing solution from EnviroLogix that allows you to test for all the most commonly screened mycotoxins with less work, taking less time, using the same platform as our GMO screening tests.

• Rapid industry-leading Prep-to-Read speed
• Ready for user-friendly use in one simple multi-toxin test
• Reliable & responsive, comprehensive product support

TotalTox has been specifically engineered as the rapid, ready, and reliable solution to meet your needs.

Download the infographic now!

Who’s in agreement that a lot of unusual things happened in the agriculture industry this year?

Covid-19 Pandemic: The impact of food-chain disruptions, processing facilities and ethanol plants idled, and unknown future impacts caused ag futures to tumble. With more answers, adaptations, and understanding since those first few dark months, the Ag industry has rebounded and risen to the challenge of satisfying the world’s demand for essential commodities.

Derecho: A derecho in August was the most costly thunderstorm event in United States history. Along with loss of life and property, millions of acres of crops were flattened as well. NOAA pegged the damages at $7.5 billion, which could rise even higher after the complete agricultural impact is known.

Brazil Soy Imports: Brazil imported its first soy from the US since 1997 this summer, bridging a domestic shortage after China pressured stocks over the summer, favoring Brazil’s new-crop soy over the US beans in storage. The government suspended tariffs from non-Mercosur countries and amended non-GMO policies to fulfill their domestic demand.

China Buys Corn: Speaking of China, the substantial rise in their purchases of U.S. corn and a rosy forecast for more is pushing corn futures to their highest levels in a year. Declining reserves along with demand for animal feed as hog populations recover point to continued demand through mid-next year.

Mexico Can’t Meet Demand: Also putting pressure on US corn, some of the largest corn producers in Mexico, citing deep government cuts to the Agriculture ministry budget which resulted in almost entirely eliminating subsidies, are signaling that they won’t be able to meet domestic demand for corn. Large orders have already been placed, following their normal import pattern at harvest time to supply livestock feed needs, and many market-watchers believe this year’s demand from Mexican grains purchasers will outpace previous years.

Considering all the challenges we faced, to be standing upright and tall at the end of this year is a great accomplishment. Here’s to a better 2021!

Upstream quality management of mycotoxins is best achieved with a comprehensive screening tool that is fast and easy to use; and produces information that can be used as an input to the quality management system for cost and quality optimization.

• Rapid industry-leading Prep-to-Read speed
• Ready for user-friendly use in one simple multi-toxin test
• Reliable & responsive, comprehensive product support

TotalTox has been specifically engineered as the rapid, ready, and reliable solution to meet your needs.

Download the whitepaper now!

In Part I: The Cotton Loop, we shared insights into the production of cotton and what happens to cotton seeds after cotton is ginned.

This second part “closes the loop” by spotlighting:

1. the cotton fiber
2. how it develops within the plant
3. and how it becomes cotton fabric

The Cotton Fiber

While cotton is growing, like most plants, it develops a seed. And like some other seeds, specialized cells grow out of the seed coat like hairs. They are generally referred to as fibers, though in a strict anatomical sense, they are technically trichomes. And cotton has the most impressive trichomes in the world!

Developing Within the Plant

Each hair is a single, unbranched cell, high in cellulose…but unlike other forms of cellulose (think wood pulp), its structure is multilayered, densely packed, and uniquely parallel. The individual strand looks like a flat, tightly twirled ribbon, tapered on the leading edge and “fuzzy” where separated from the seed. This gives cotton unparalleled softness, especially when compared to synthetics with their sharply cut ends. No wonder cotton is the #1 fabric in the world!

After being separated from seeds at the gin, the fiber is cleaned, dried and compressed into massive bales, ready for a textile mill or other downstream use. Before sale it is classified by specialists for quality, using factors such as staple (average fiber length), color, and cleanliness.

How Cotton Becomes a Fabric

If you look around your home, you can find cotton everywhere: swabs and cotton balls, bandages, books, and even money…but mostly in the form of fabric. The bales from the gin (1) are blended and fluffed to make the most uniform starting material possible (2), spread out into a thin web over rollers (3) to be cleaned and aligned. The material is then fed through a trumpet (4) to form sliver (pronounced sly-ver)(5).

Multiple slivers are drawn together (6), twisted and spun to form cotton yarn (7) wound onto spindles or bobbins. Those bobbins are mounted on machines to be woven or knitted into fabric. To get an idea of the difference, weaving yarn on a loom produces a tight, structured fabric (like denim). Using needles to knit yarns results in a stretchier feel (like jersey).

The next time you put on your comfiest T-shirt, swab your ears, or slide a dollar into a vending machine, we hope you’ll have a deeper appreciation of the cotton used to make these items.

Next Steps

• Interested in how EnviroLogix can help your company with its Non-GMO Cotton testing?
  Contact one of our agriculture consultants at (866) 408-4597, extension 1, or by emailing info@envirologix.com

• Ready to order GMO testing?
  Order EnviroLogix’ industry-leading GMO QuickStix for Cotton

EnviroLogix Inc.’s history as a pioneering innovator for the agriculture, food/feed supply chain and crop science industries continues with the Non-GMO Project approval of its ISO-17025 laboratories.

Portland, ME, September 1, 2020 – EnviroLogix is pleased to announce its ISO-17025 accredited laboratories have received approval from the Non-GMO Project to provide laboratory analysis for brands seeking Non-GMO Project verification for their products. The laboratories were established to offer EnviroLogix’ superior technical understanding of non-GMO testing complexities, as well as its strong industry reputation for product performance, integrity of results, and scientific rigor. EnviroLogix laboratories are accredited to meet the need for expedited, affordable laboratory testing of samples critical to the consumer-packaged goods, distilling, poultry and livestock feed, and pet food markets.

“In speaking to several of our current non-GMO test customers, it was clear there was a gap in this market to be filled, preferably by a trusted leader in the non-GMO diagnostic space,” said Bill Welch, EnviroLogix CEO. “Atop our ISO-17025 certification, having Non-GMO Project approval positions EnviroLogix as a respected laboratory for consumer-packaged goods manufacturers who wish to include the coveted Butterfly label on their product packaging.”

EnviroLogix has been the leader in producing rapid, decision-point non-GMO and mycotoxin testing lateral flow device (LFD) diagnostic solutions for years. EnviroLogix’ LFD solutions enable users to make immediate decisions about products, purity, and food safety where it matters most—in the field, as grain trucks arrive, or on the factory floor; however, independent on-site LFD testing alone does not meet the rigorous qualifying requirements for inclusion of the Non-GMO Project Butterfly label on packaging.
“With this new offering, EnviroLogix now combines Non-GMO Project accredited laboratory services and the broadest portfolio of non-GMO decision-point diagnostics tools in the market,” added Julian Salazar, EnviroLogix Vice President of Marketing and Customer Engagement. “We’re offering Non-GMO Project product manufacturers and suppliers highly complementary services tailored to their specific and exacting non-GMO diagnostic needs.”

EnviroLogix Inc. was the first to offer LFD technology for mycotoxin screening in grain and continues to provide robust solutions and world-class service and support to its markets. EnviroLogix’ commitment to scientific innovation and providing exceptional solutions for today’s identity preservation and food-safety environments remains at the forefront with its status as a Non-GMO Project Approved Laboratory.

For more information about EnviroLogix and its Non-GMO Project approved and ISO-17025 accredited laboratory services, visit the Lab Services page.

Comprehensive programs rely on the best of on-site and 3rd party analysis

EnviroLogix on-site strip tests for seed and grain provide rapid, quantitative results that drive real-time business decisions throughout the food production chain. However, many companies also send out to 3rd party laboratories for GMO testing in addition to the EnviroLogix GMO combs and strips they run on-site. Here are the two most common reasons we hear from customers about when a send-out test is needed:

• Processed sample testing

  Our strip tests detect GMO proteins in grain and seed based on very specific molecular structures. These structures are modified during heat and chemical processing steps, which could impact their detection. This is why strip tests are not typically recommend for GMO testing of processed materials. In addition, samples ground too finely (such as flour) can also impact strip GMO quantitation. Testing conducted by 3rd party laboratories uses PCR methods that detect GMO DNA, which remains intact in most processed materials. Although customers can rely on QuickScan results to qualify incoming grain, confirmation testing via 3rd party PCR for finished goods is commonly performed to ensure that accidental co-mingling did not occur in plants that process both non-GMO and commodity grain.

• Regulatory Requirements

  Both export and domestic certification programs (such as the Non-GMO Project), as well as grain some contracts, often require 3rd party PCR analysis. For these programs, tests conducted on-site are used for risk mitigation and may provide critical quality documentation that is supplemented by 3rd party test reports. For some regulatory programs, grain or finished goods sampling must also be conducted by a 3rd party prior to the send-out testing.

With planting well underway, harvest should be top of mind. Hopefully conditions lead to bumper crops of grain and product will be readily available to all desired markets. Making sure what you are delivering is of top quality is paramount to capturing every penny per bushel. One thing to consider is that more than one mycotoxin may be present in your product. More and more we are seeing the presence of with Vomitoxin or Aflatoxin with Fumonisin in the US.

Many producers are unaware these new threats exist for livestock; others mistakenly believe their location is not affected by toxin producing fungi. Unfortunatly reports of mycotoxins are finding them in areas where there has never been an issue previously, leaving producers to absorb docks at delivery. Ranges of concern for Fumonisin include >1 ppm for equine diets and >10 ppm for swine feed. As a point of reference, some of the corn analyzed in north-central Kansas showed Fumonisin concentrations >100ppm, with some as high as 700 ppm in 2018.

Seldom in our industry are surprises a good thing when product gets delivered.  The good news is EnviroLogix has a robust Fumonisin detection test as a part of our Common Extraction panel. If you are already testing corn for DON or Aflatoxin, Fumonisin is a simple addition. By using the common extraction protocol, you get three results in the time it used to take to get only one. Our Fumonisin assay can detect Fumonisin in Corn, Corn Flour, and DDGS between 0.2 to 7 ppm. The Fumonisin Common Extraction assay is an elegant, precise test that is going to deliver the results you need to manage your downstream risk.

Make sure your quality is buttoned up so you can maximize the benefit of your hard work.

As the market leader in on-site GMO testing, EnviroLogix has supported many uses for its GMO detection tests.

Some folks use our tests to screen commodities and feed ingredients to ensure they do not contain GMOs – this allows them to serve special sectors including export and Non-GMO certified markets.

Others use our tests to confirm that a trait that is supposed to be expressing in a leaf or seed sample is performing as intended.

Such is the case with the cotton, a unique industry that we have had the privilege to serve for nearly 20 years. It is an interesting loop system that we thought you might like to learn more about.

Here is a graphic that illustrates the steps in the process.

Then the cycle starts again; farmers and ginners working in tandem to produce amazing and wonderful cotton, the world’s most favorite fabric!

When we follow the seeds as they come out of the gin, the ones destined for planting are tested in numerous ways before being prepped for the subsequent season.  For GMOs in particular, the traits that are expected to be present need to be confirmed before being bagged and sold as the traited seed desired by the farmer.

But that only represents about 5% of the seed produced by ginning.  Seed that is not destined for planting is further processed at cottonseed crushing mills.  The seed is delinted and that fiber (“linters”) is used in a variety of paper, batting, and other specialty products (including photographic film!).  Delinted seed is de-hulled and those hulls are used to supplement animal feed and also in industrial products.

The two most valuable by-products are produced at this point.  The kernels are crushed to extract cottonseed oil (#1); and the product left after pressing, cottonseed meal; high in protein, it is a prized feed component for livestock and poultry.

We have followed the path of the cotton seed itself, but how the cotton fiber is produced by the plant and what happens when it comes out of the gin is an amazing story in itself—look for Part II, coming in the next newsletter.

Portland, ME, May 12^th, 2020 – In support of the communities surrounding our headquarters here in Portland, EnviroLogix Inc. recently provided support to five local area programs. These programs reflect the strength and integrity of our culture and serve as models for humanity.

“These organizations are always taking care of the hardest hit among us, but most critically they are making a difference during these unprecedented times.” said Bill Welch, President of EnviroLogix. “It is a great honor for us to give back to the community that our business is so proud and fortunate to be a part of.”

EnviroLogix has made financial contributions to each of the following charitable organizations:

Falmouth Food Pantry: Serving Falmouth and Surrounding Communities
https://www.falmouthme.org/town-clerk/events/25166
For over 30 years, Falmouth Food Pantry has been serving the needs of citizens in Falmouth and surrounding communities (Cumberland, Yarmouth, Portland, and Westbrook). Volunteers serve clients at the pantry, bring meals to some clients, help take in deliveries, and stock shelves.

Project Grace: Neighbors Helping Neighbors
https://projectgracemaine.weebly.com
Project Grace is neighbors helping neighbors in Scarborough Maine. Their mission is to improve the lives of their Scarborough neighbors by identifying both those in need and those willing to share their gifts, and coordinating the interchange in a compassionate, confidential manner.

The Locker Project: Feeding The Future
http://mainelockerproject.org
The Locker Project connects food-insecure children with nourishing food to improve their learning capacity, health and future. They take a whole-family approach to child hunger, and their programs strive to be low-barrier, stigma-free and environmentally responsible.

Through These Doors: Domestic Resources & Advocacy
https://www.throughthesedoors.org/
TTD creates innovative responses and mobilizes the community to promote safety in the face of oppression and violence. They provide safe and accessible services to those affected by domestic violence regardless of race, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, gender, age, primary language spoken, or immigration status.

Westbrook Food Pantry: Feeding The Future
http://westbrookfoodpantry.org/
The Westbrook Community Food & Resource Center is an all-volunteer non-profit organization providing free supplemental food to Westbrook residents on a monthly basis. Volunteers make this pantry thrive and are needed to work in the pantry, in starting food drives and in other ways as well.

EnviroLogix Inc., a leading producer of GMO and mycotoxin tests serving the food and feed safety markets, continues to provide innovative solutions as the world-leading supplier of on-site quantitative GMO protein detection, and was the first to offer LFD technology for mycotoxin screening in grain. EnviroLogix’ dedication to scientific innovation and providing exceptional solutions for today’s identity-preservation and food-safety supply chains remains at the forefront. For more information visit envirologix.com.

Figure 1 – Growth Rates of Organic Livestock Headcount

Organic and non-GMO production animal heads have, for all categories except grass fed cattle, continued to grow at rapid rates year-over-year, for instance 36% from 2017-2018, compared to conventional production animal categories that typical grow at rates of 1 to 3% per annum. Data reported by the Organic and Non-GMO Report [1] tabulated the headcount for cattle, swine and poultry from 2015 through 2018 and was used to calculate the growth rates shown in Figure 1.

The poultry segment and all sub-segments experienced explosive growth from 2015 through 2018 with broilers almost doubling in size in 2017 and 2018. Growth in the broiler category was historically limited by the availability of organic feed. An important domestic limitation for organic feed production has been the requirement that planted acres must be at least three years free from restricted pesticides and herbicides prior to being compliant with USDA Organic Certification. This three year delay creates a financial challenge when converting conventional acres to organic for smaller farmers. Another obstacle for producing Organic feed related to imported grains and oilseed has been source authenticity [2].

Grain and food authenticity will continue to be an ever present threat in the supply chain and only testing and well designed identity preservation systems can guarantee traceability and quality. In recent years, increased domestic production of organic and non-GMO grains and oilseeds combined with organic and non-GMO imports have enabled the broiler segment to grow rapidly.

To put the organic and non-GMO livestock growth rates into perspective, retail sales data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture National Agricultural Statistics Service (USDA NASS) 2016 Organic Survey is summarized in Table 1. Animal products accounted for 44% of the total $7.6 billion of organic product sales in 2016. As of December 2019, the USDA NASS began field work to update the Organic Survey data. The 2019 Organic Survey data will be made available in the fall of 2020. This data will be summarized in a subsequent newsletter when made pubically available.

Sources & Additional Resources:

1. Organic feed demand to achieve double-digit growth again over 2018
2. Washington Post: The labels said ‘organic.’ But these massive imports of corn and soybeans weren’t.
3. 2016 Certified Organic Survey Highlights
4. EnviroLogix News: Production Animal Spotlight – Chicken

Mycotoxin testing in ethanol plants isn’t new; it’s been fairly standard since the secondary market for feed was created for DDGS (dried distillers grains with solubles). Almost all feed markets have strict guidelines about the levels of mycotoxins present, so most facilities have incorporated at least cursory testing of both incoming corn and the DDGS byproduct. Zearalenone isn’t new either, but it is growing in recognition and importance; improved worldwide monitoring reveals greater prevalence, increased co-contamination, and higher levels than previously thought. In DDGS specifically, a recent BIOMIN report noted Zearalenone present in 34% of samples tested, with an average level of 362 ppb. As a myco-estrogen, its deleterious effects on the reproductive system of production animals, most especially swine, can have a tremendous negative impact.

As it relates to proactively analyzing hazards for FSMA compliance, and as we have previously highlighted (FUMO), unusual weather and climatic anomalies are shifting previously-believed norms for certain mycotoxins, so it is not safe to assume that a particular mycotoxin won’t be present solely based on geography. And because of the multiplicative effect on mycotoxins during ethanol production, even small amounts of mycotoxins entering the plan become magnified in the end product.

Acquiring a comprehensive baseline for a crop season can help quality managers create ongoing plans for test frequency and standards for any particular year, supporting the rationale for which mycotoxins are tested for and how frequently. Supplemental testing of the finished DDGS provides additional data points, confirming robust screening of incoming corn and quality assurance for the finished product. That approach provides the basis for complying with the requirements and intention of the FSMA.

Sources & Additional Resources:

1. Pig Progress, “Zearalenone in Pig Feed—A Challenge to Solve”
2. Biomin World Mycotoxin Survey 2018
3. Purdue University Cooperative Extension Service, “Zearalenone Concerns in Reproducing Livestock”
4. EnviroLogix News: Fumonisin Front & Center

The genetic modifications being applied to soybeans are coming fast and furious lately, following the path of its big-brother commodity corn. The commercial pipeline is stuffed full!

If you are confused (or curious) about the traits available in soy, we’ve created a handy chart illustrating some of the most popular and commercially successful GM soybeans. Here you’ll see a simplified version showing the proteins that confer various herbicide and insect resistance, as well as a couple that modify fatty acid profiles. If you click on the chart, you can see an extended version with more detail.

As such, it is becoming increasingly difficult to source and segregate soybean loads with guesswork, conjecture, or a handshake. Although most producers are honest and up front about what they’re selling, and contracts go a long way toward insuring integrity, it only takes a few bad apples to wreak havoc in the supply chain.

At EnviroLogix we support your right to know the status and standing of your commodities and products, thus protecting their value, by providing test kits to confirm and/or rule out GMO at various steps in the supply chain.

For more on soybean testing, check out these related articles:

• More about GMO Testing
• Crops tested: GMO Soybeans
• EnviroLogix QuickComb for Bulk Soybeans
• 2m (2mepsps) and the North American Soybean harvest

EnviroLogix Inc. offers first lateral flow test strip for the detection and quantification of aflatoxin and fumonisin in masa flour.  

Portland, ME, December 17, 2019 – EnviroLogix Inc. launched QuickTox Flex for the detection of aflatoxin and fumonisin in masa flour. QuickTox Flex is EnviroLogix’ state-of-the-art mycotoxin testing line of products designed for easy, accurate, and fast quantification of mycotoxin contamination in grain and grain by-products.

“EnviroLogix is committed to providing the agricultural market with innovative solutions to meet the increasing needs of our customers,” said Bill Welch, President of EnviroLogix Inc. “Thanks to the work of our dedicated research and development team, we are able to supply this essential tool for producers of masa flour, giving them the answers required to satisfy the demands of their customers.”

QuickTox Flex for masa flour brings the benefits of the Flex line of mycotoxin assays to the corn milling market, such as less hands-on time, temperature and humidity control, and expanded quantification ranges. With the addition of these matrices, aflatoxin and fumonisin can be accurately tested in 10 minutes using a simple procedure with one extract.

According to Ian Farmer, Vice President, Global Sales, “The addition of masa flour to EnviroLogix’ product portfolio provides a decision-point test to equip our customers, specifically corn processors, with a screening tool that will improve both operational efficiency and product quality.”

EnviroLogix Inc. is a leading producer of GMO and mycotoxin tests serving the food and feed safety markets. The company continues to provide innovative solutions as the sole supplier of on-site quantitative GMO protein detection and were the first to offer LFD technology for mycotoxin screening in grain. EnviroLogix’ dedication to scientific innovation and providing exceptional solutions for today’s identity-preservation and food-safety supply chains remains at the forefront.

For more information about EnviroLogix solutions for mycotoxins visit our mycotoxin test kit page.

CONTACT: Brian Harris, EnviroLogix Inc., +1-207-274-6408 bharris@envirologix.com

We have all heard the safety guy say it, “safety first, safety last, safety always”. But why is it that that preventable accidents are on the rise? Here are 7 things to think about as you work in a physically demanding job.

1. Grain is like quicksand. It takes about 5 seconds for an adult to sink knee deep and need help to get out. In 20 seconds, you can be engulfed in grain. The force needed to pull out a person can exceed 2000 pounds. “Oh, that will never happen to me” said by literally the last person to be engulfed in grain. Have an emergency plan. Turn off any grain handling equipment. Turn on aerators. Where a respirator.
2. Working around power equipment. Loose clothing or hair can get bound up in machinery in seconds, putting you where you don’t want to be. Tuck pants into boots and avoid hoodies with drawstrings. Make sure your sleeves fit. Tie back loose hair.
3. Slips and falls. Machinery takes a lot of lubrication which can often end up on the shop floor. Wear skid resistant footwear. With colder months look into getting Stabil-icers or similar boot covers when working outdoors. You can almost tap dance on glare ice with the right gear.
4. Electrical equipment. Always lock out, tag out circuits that you work on. Assume that a circuit may be live when you are working on it. It’s no fun to be known as “Sparky” at work.
5. Long hours/fatigue. When you work in acres instead of hours, make sure to rest when you need it. It is to easy to take a shortcut or do something you shouldn’t if you are too exhausted to do it right. Take a caffeine nap. Drink a cup of coffee and then sleep for 20 minutes. The caffeine will have more receptors to work on when you are sleeping. It can make all the difference.
6. Working in high places. Make sure you are wearing a harness and it is tied in properly. Always follow safety guidelines when working high up. Make sure someone knows where you are and when you will be back.
7. Choking. I am always dreaming of turkey this time of year. Eat slowly and savor all of that good cooking. Chew thoroughly as you watch the game. And if your team scores a touchdown, try not to have food in your mouth. Watch a YouTube on the Heimlich maneuver, you can apply it to yourself if need be.

Since ingredient costs may account for 70 to 90% of the cost of producing feeds, managing ingredient quality is very important to ensuring high feed mill productivity. To control variation in feed ingredient quality, the feed mill must have a robust Quality Assurance/Quality Control (QA/QC) policy that describes what, when, and how to measure ingredient quality. On site measurement of bulk ingredients at the point of delivery enables the feed mill to segregate low quality ingredients and appropriately re-formulate to produce finished feeds that meet requirements.

Rapid tests exist to measure nutritional content and natural toxins such as mycotoxins at the point of delivery. For mycotoxins, co-occurrence in crop commodities and processing co-products is on the rise and mycotoxin test kit providers have responded by making kits available that can test the same sample extract, which allows the feed mill to process trucks at a faster rate. These quantitative mycotoxin tests are inserted into a reader device that digitizes the results and makes them available for distribution. A best-in-class QA program will have an ingredient rejection policy that specifies the analytical values that trigger a rejection, how to document a quality report, how to send a sample to a laboratory for confirmatory testing, how to save a sample in the event of a dispute, and how to communicate the rejection with the supplier. Furthermore, all quality reports should be internally retained in a supplier history file to monitor supplier consistency and identify trends in performance.

The EnviroLogix QuickScan System is used to read digitize results for EnviroLogix mycotoxin tests. For feed mills producing Non GMO feed, it should be noted that the QuickScan System also reads GMO tests and that GMO tests and mycotoxin tests can be read simultaneously. The QuickScan System possesses many value adding features such as: data analysis, quality checks, export options, inventory management, on-board data, user authentication, custom cutoffs, and automatic associations. These software features make managing quality, ingredient suppliers, and test kit inventory simple and fast. Furthermore, the QuickScan System makes it easy to comply with the stringent record keeping requirements of the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). Specifically, the FSMA record keeping requirements state that original values for hazard analysis (e.g., mycotoxins) must be retained for two years and that should the FDA request records, the records must be produced within 24 hours. The QuickScan System can store up to 100,000 quality reports in a digital format therefore making data retrieval fast if the FDA should request records.

For the nation’s breadbasket, flip-flopping growing conditions have prevailed. From flooded plantings to ideal sun and heat, cool moisture-laden periods and even pockets of drought…throw in a few hailstorms and blizzards, and the 2019 growing season is shaping up to be one of the most volatile in recent memory.

That makes it difficult to guess what yield and quality metrics might look like. We heard about crops planted late, but nearly caught up by harvest time. About corn ears filling so fast they were busting out of the husks.  Concern that late heat and rapid maturing would impact soybean sizes as well as oil and protein content.

USDA estimates on crop quality reflect the effects of this volatility on corn and soy specifically, with the percentage of each reported as in good or very good condition at the lowest point in 5 years.

The variability of weather conditions makes it extremely hard to predict whether a mycotoxin outbreak is looming on the horizon. The truth is there is no reliable predictor, but there are some conditions conducive to proliferation. And this year, we’ve seen them all!

The only way to ensure mycotoxins don’t make it into streams where they don’t belong is to test for them. And there’s no safety any more in presuming that some toxin that’s not usually found in your area isn’t there…too many folks have found out the hard way that it’s just not the case anymore.

While global pork and beef consumption has remained unchanged since 1990 chicken consumption has grown 70% and is now the largest processed meat category at 38%. Chickens account for 23 billion of the 30 billion land animals living on farms. With the growing popularity of poultry as a source of protein comes scientific research focused on health and productivity. Poultry nutrition is a major driver of flock efficiency and well-being. The global poultry feed market has been valued at $3.38B USD and is projected to grow at a 4.1% CAGR (2019-2024). Mycotoxin identification and quantitation are vital pieces of data when assessing the quality of poultry feed. Mycotoxins are well characterized toxins produced by molds (or fungi) that grow on a variety of crops and are associated with human and animal disease and death. The impact of mycotoxins on chickens varies by species, age, sex, exposure period, dose, and mycotoxin mix.

Mycotoxins are delivered to and have severe effects on the gastrointestinal tract of chickens influencing energy efficiency and immunity. Common symptoms include reduced feed intake, low weight gain, poor feed efficiency, compromised immunity, reduced hatchability, thin shells, and decreased egg production. Organ damage, commonly liver and kidney, has also been observed and can be lethal. Flocks affected by mycotoxicosis return to normal mortality 1-2 weeks after toxins have been removed from the diet. Mycotoxins of concern in poultry feed include aflatoxin, ochratoxin A, Fumonisin, deoxynivalenol (DON), and T-2.

Mycotoxins have been found to be transferred to the meat and eggs of poultry causing public health concerns. Poultry feed is commonly made of corn (70-75%) with the remainder being primarily comprised of soy (soy, soybean meal, roasted soy). Analysis of feed inputs can be completed onsite with rapid simple quantitative lateral flow strips (see EnviroLogix mycotoxin portfolio) or by sending representative feed samples to an experienced ISO 17025 accredited laboratory. Onsite mycotoxin analysis allows for real-time mycotoxin data enabling contaminated loads to be blended with clean loads to achieve acceptable levels. In addition, onsite mycotoxin assessment allows for the addition of mycotoxin binders to inactivate toxins or biotransformation products which use microbes and enzymes to metabolize the toxins into harmless metabolites. Mycotoxin proliferation can be controlled during storage by limiting the moisture content in feed and by introducing an antifungal application. This however will not control the effects of toxins that have already been produced as toxins are very stable.

In our next newsletter we will explore the explosive growth of the organic and non-GMO chicken market and challenges originating the feed to support this emerging market.

Demand for non-GMO soybeans continues to increase, but domestic supply is still a long way from meeting it. Although the pace of imports slowed last year and acreage dedicated to organic soybeans increased, domestic supply is still not growing fast enough to keep end users from sourcing organic soybeans outside the US.

The biggest driver is the need to feed organic poultry, the production of which has seen a compound annual growth rate over the past four years of 46%. Demand was so great last year that domestic organic soybeans for feed at one point sold for an average $18.72 per bushel while GM soy averaged about $9 during the same period.

One might think that premium market prices coupled with lower seed costs would make converting to organic acres an easy decision to make. According to the USDA, farmers faced their fourth drop in net income in five years in 2018, while farm costs increased 4.2%. Conventional seed was about 40% the cost of the priciest GMO seed. Grain merchandisers report more farmers interested in converting. So why doesn’t the rate of conversion of farmland to organic acreage rise to match the growth in demand?

The answer is risk. Not only do challenges like weed control and yield loss need to be managed, but the costs and time to fully convert from conventional to organic can push profitability out for 3 years or more. Experts agree, to encourage more domestic conversions, end users need to do a better job supporting producers. Offering long-term contracts and favorable off-take agreements for rotational crops can help reduce farmers’ risk during their transitions. This also conveys benefits back to the end users: by taking a partnership approach, processors can be more confident in their own products, and reduce the risk of sourcing from unknown and possibly fraudulent organic suppliers.

When it comes to any kind of testing, whether it is for GMO’s or mycotoxins such as DON or, vomi, or aflatoxin, the goal should always be to offer a fair test. The growers in your supply chain put blood, sweat, and tears into their products. They strive for premium pricing in exchange for those efforts. Upstream from the growers, processors demand the highest quality products with good value. These processors need to be confident that non-GMO and mycotoxin test information is fair, and has as little bias as possible. The best way you can accomplish this is by reducing the sources of error in your testing. In this article we lay out our top five sources of errors with regards to using EnviroLogix (or any other brand) GMO and mycotoxin strip tests; and we also give you tips to strengthening the relationships that grow your business, whether you’re a grower, a processor, or some other node along the pathways of our vast food supply chain.

1. Accuracy of Measurement
   Our tests are sensitive to the amount of water you add compared to the volume grain. Make sure your scale is calibrated and that you account for the weight of whatever container you are using to measure your grain. As for water, use a graduated cylinder for best results and know that the meniscus (lowest level of the water as it reaches up the sides of the cylinder) is at the volume required for your measurement.
   EQUIPMENT TIP: Use a graduated cylinder to measure water
2. Grains or Distillers Granularity
   This refers to the surface area of your ground material. The best way to check your grind quality is with a #20 mesh sieve (Seedburo has the best price we have found on them). For non-GMO testing, the granularity needs to be coarser than for mycotoxins. For non-GMO soybean tests the specification is 40-50% through a #20 mesh screen, and for corn it is 60-70%. In mycotoxin tests the granularity should look more like a flour consistency, where >95% needs to pass through a #20 mesh.
   EQUIPMENT TIP: Use a #20 mesh sieve to get the right granularity in your grains or distillers
3. Deficient Shaking
   Once you’ve added water to the material you’ll be testing, you need to combine them into solution. EnviroLogix has worked extensively to bring you the shortest and easiest protocols on the market but that doesn’t matter if what you are trying to detect is bound up in the material. When you do shake your sample with water, try to emulate a paint shaker at a hardware store in terms of how hard to shake it. With the mycotoxins, set a timer for 2 minutes. You will feel it in your arm when you are done.
   EQUIPMENT TIP: a mechanical shaker will save wear and tear on your limbs
4. Timing Errors
   The EnviroLogix DON Flex test reads at 2 minutes and Aflatoxin Flex reads at 4. Make absolutely sure to use a timer. In busy testing environments, it’s easy to walk away and lose track of how long a test has been running. You want to cut the strips and read the test within 10 seconds of the timer going off.
   EQUIPMENT TIP: digital timers are extremely inexpensive (avoid using a phone or other equipment that serves other purposes)
5. Equipment Hygiene and Function
   We recently heard the story of a cargo vessel held up at dock for 4 hours waiting to unload because a speck of dust had literally created a visual spot within their testing equipment. All rapid-detection decision-point tests rely on optical instruments, meaning that cleanliness equals profit. Make sure to perform daily maintenance:
   1. a calibration
   2. a clean test, and
   3. read your check comb.

   You want zero bad clusters when you run your clean test. We know work environments may be difficult to keep clean under the best of circumstances. Bad clusters may actually be on your clean card so make sure to wipe it off before you run your clean test. With the check comb, make sure it says “ok” six times. If it does not, call Technical Service at (866)408-4597 extension 2. They are happy to hear from you.
   EQUIPMENT TIP: keep your clean card/check comb spot-free

When we were asked if we could adapt our mycotoxin strips to detect Aflatoxin and Fumonisin in masa, we learned all about how corn becomes masa. Though in general we know masa is used to make tortillas, what we found was a fascinating process that traces its roots into ancient Mesoamerica. Thought to have developed as a means of making corn more grindable, it also confers nutritional and even safety benefits to the resulting product.

Boiling corn in water along with an alkali agent is known as Nixtamalization (NEESH-tamali-ZAY-shun). The alkali causes biochemical transformation which not only removes the indigestible pericarp portion of the corn kernel but also makes calcium and niacin (vitamin B3) bioavailable.

As corn was developed and spread throughout the Americas, different native populations used variations of this process on their corn products. Whether from ash (potash, potassium hydroxide) or mineral lime (calcium hydroxide), nixtamalization is traceable through Aztec, Inca, Maya, and Native American populations. Here in the Eastern US, the first colonists noted that Native Americans cooked corn with wood ash, but mistakenly thought it was simply for flavor (which they did not like), and dismissed its importance.

Columbus is credited with bringing corn back to the ‘old world,’ but unfortunately knowledge of the nixtamalization process did not go with it, likely because Europe was more advanced industrially and did not need to grind corn by hand. Although its popularity spread quickly throughout the continent and into Africa, many peasant populations that relied on corn when other staple crops failed are known to have suffered wasting diseases due to the ignorance of how to release corn’s nutritional value.

This also affected the American South during the Great Depression; the population deriving from mainly European immigrants did not know the secret of unlocking corn’s maximum nutritional value, and over 100,000 deaths were directly attributed to pellagra, a chronic wasting disorder.

Its nutritional benefits well characterized, it is only recently that nixtamalization’s effect on mycotoxin contamination is becoming more understood, studied, and reported on. It is quite possible that the ancients knew nixtamalization made even ‘bad’ corn edible, and there are numerous scientific studies showing that mycotoxin loads in masa after nixtamalization are lower than in the initial corn, while steep water (nejayote) and the removed portions of corn (pericarp) have shown increased loads.

While it appears possible to reduce mycotoxin loads when making masa, it is still important that processors screen incoming corn for Aflatoxin and Fumonisin to ensure the performance and safety compliance of the finished product, be it tortilla, posole, or other item. And now corn processors have another tool to ensure safety compliance by testing their product within or at the end of the nixtamalization process.

Additional definitions and background:

Nixtalamize (neesh-TA-malize)
Source: https://growlermag.com/alex-roberts-on-the-history-and-unexpected-virtue-of-masa/

The origin of the nixtamilization of corn is about 1500 BC–1200 BC; somewhere in the Aztec empire, they happened upon it. Of course no one really knows how it started, treating the kernels with alkalis. You could either use pure calcium hydroxide from the earth, mineral lime called “cal,” or potash (potassium hydroxide), the ash from burning plants, and heat it with corn and let it soak.
Read more at The Growler.

Tortilla (tor-TEE-uh)
Source: http://www.latortillaoven.com/history/

Totilla – a name given by the Spaniards to the unleavened flat bread they found in Mexico among the Aztec in the sixteeth century. The world “tortilla” comes from the Spanish word “torta” which means round cake.
Read more at La Tortilla Oven

Mycotoxins During the Processes of Nixtamalization and Tortilla Production, Sara Schaarschmidt and Carsten Fauhl-Hassek
Source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30995755

Alkaline cooking of maize causes several physical, as well as (bio)chemical, changes [14,15]. Some of those are associated with the enhanced nutritional value of the grain and are of particular importance in diets mainly relying on maize. The improved bioaccessibility of calcium and niacin (vitamin B3) are likely the most important of these changes.
Read more at National Center for Biotechnology Information

Everything You Ever Needed to Know About Nixtamalization But Didn’t Know to Ask, by Dr. Rachel V. Briggs
Source: https://allthingshominy.com/2015/10/08/everything-you-ever-needed-to-know-about-nixtamalization-but-didnt-know-to-ask/

Maize, like many New World food items, was rapidly assimilated into the culinary traditions of Europe, becoming common place within only a few decades after Columbus’s first trip…Nixtamalization is a culinary technique that utilizes an alkaline substrate in order to process and cook maize. The practice itself involves soaking dried maize kernels to a solution made from water and an alkaline substrate, like limestone or lye, then cooking the kernels, or boiling the kernels in an alkaline solution for several hours.
Read more at All Things Hominy

Corn History: Everything Starts with Corn, by Azteca Milling
Source: https://aztecamilling.com/en/nutrition-health/everything-starts-with-corn/corn-history/

Ancient Aztecs were so highly dependent on corn that they worshipped Centeotl, the goddess of corn. To the Aztecs, Centeotl symbolized corn, a vitally important food crop that was also resistant to disease and freezing temperatures…It was during this time that ancient Aztecs began making tortillas. The Aztecs discovered that ashes from cooking fires mixed with water created an alkaline lime mixture that softened, partially dissolved, and helped remove the kernel’s tough outer skin, making corn easier to cook and make into masa (dough). Thus began the process now known as nixtamalization.
Read more at Azteca Milling

EnviroLogix’ Emily Whiston reports on her impressions from CRISPR & NBT AgBio Congress 2019. Her thoughts are summarized in a narrated slide deck.
Highlights:

• Agenda: global in scope
• What CRISPR and gene editing technology can do for ag and the global food supply chain
• Deep dive to advance understanding of plant biology and soil
• Address threats to staple crops
• Adapt farming to a changing climate
• Expand food choices for consumers

Click the video below to watch her report (1m 35s):

Soybeans containing new genetically modified traits will be harvested in North America this year. The soybean trade names for the new traits are GT27 and Enlist E3. GT27 is a stacked trait that enables herbicide tolerance to glyphosate and isoxaflutole. The isoxaflutole herbicide (branded as ALITE 27 – previously known as Balance Bean) does not have EPA registration for use on soybeans yet. GT27 soybean seed is also available as a stack with Liberty Link. Enlist E3 is a stacked trait that enables triple herbicide tolerance to glyphosate, glufosinate, and 2,4-D.

Since the market share of these new traits is not readily available it is hard to estimate the risk of these traits co-mingling with commercial seed lots destined for planting or entering non-GMO bulk grain supply chains. Currently, EnviroLogix has a qualitative lateral flow strip for the detection of 2mepsps that has been validated to detect GT27. The strip was originally designed for detection of 2mepsps in cottonseed but has since been validated to detect 2mepsps in soybean as well.

The strip has a limit of detection of 1 soybean in a pool of 200 soybeans (0.5%). Seed breeders and seed producers should use seedcalc8 to devise a qualitative impurity testing plan to perform adventitious presence testing of soybean seed lots. Non-GMO grain handlers should take a representative sample of the bulk soybeans, grind, and weigh out a sample based on average seed weight.

EnviroLogix is working on adding a quantitative strip to the non-GMO soy comb to detect GT27. This product will likely be available in Q4 of 2019.

EnviroLogix is proud to be an American company and to work with you!
In celebration of the Independence Day holiday, our offices will be closing.
Here is our schedule for the first week of July:

• Open normal hours July 1st – July 3rd
• Closed July 4th and 5th. We will reopen on July 8th, 2019

Please plan your orders accordingly. If you have questions, don’t hesitate to contact Customer Service toll-free at (866) 408-4597, ext 1 or by emailing us at CustomerService@EnviroLogix.com. Thank you very much for your business and to those in the United States, have a safe holiday!

There’s a lot at risk involved in working with grain: equipment failure, facility catastrophe, supply chain irregularities, personnel well-being, and countless other issues before you even consider the commodity. Then there’s the grain itself. On one hand, it’s grown in a field with variable moisture conditions and other risk factors conducive to mycotoxin infection. On the other hand, buyers want to ensure that they know if a crop is GMO (made from genetically edited seeds) or not, and if so, which traits are present.

By the time the grain reaches the probe station, a lot of risk has already accumulated. It is for this reason that solid sampling protocol is essential to maximize the effectiveness of testing. Without good protocol, you run the risk of getting it wrong: accepting grain you shouldn’t and disappointing your downstream customers because they received mycotoxin contaminated, or GMO-positive, products from you.

Let’s say you run a test and it comes back high. Moreover, the grower drove their truck to a competitor and got a different result. What just happened? In a word, sampling. While you can’t grind a whole load, you have to take a quality sampling that’s as representative of the entire load as possible.

How do you know if that sample represents the truth? You may not like the answer, but there’s always error when it comes to sampling: the sample is never a perfect representation of the whole; but there are things we get can do to make sure we as close as we possibly can:

1. In sampling, size matters, and bigger is always better. For example, by going from a 200g sample to a 1000g sample for non-GMO soybeans, the confidence level goes from 80 to 95% based on sampling studies we conducted with one of our customers.
2. Probing: whether you do it by hand or with a pneumatic probe, you want to hit at least six locations in a truck and make sure the probe is the appropriate length to get to the bottom of the container. Insert it at an angle with the slot closed. With the slots up, open the probe and move it up and down twice. Close the probe and continue. You want to avoid spout lines, because fines and contamination are highest in those locations.
3. Use a diverter for your sample. This increases the randomness of the sample you are taking and will make it more representative of what you are testing, be it truck, barge, or other vessel.
4. If something seems a little off about this sample or test, the absolute best thing to do is to re-probe and run a second test, taking the average of the two tests. Do not “cherry pick” and take the result you like better. If that’s not an option, the next best choice would be to test a different portion of the sample you collected.

We occasionally hear from a customer who’s frustrated that our test isn’t working right for them. When we explore their test protocol, it turns out they weren’t following easy-to-implement, and vital, best practices. Do it the right way every time…here’s how to avoid confusion and get the best results:

1. Print the test-specific QuickGuide (single-page instruction sheets) that we make for our most popular tests. Attach it to the wall above where you run your tests.
2. Do you run Vom, Afla, and Fumonisin, or any combination of those three? Use Common Extraction. One sample prep will get you three results, keeping it simple.
   
3. Review your standard operating procedure (SOP). Are you creating extra steps by storing bags in the wrong cabinet? Can you pre-measure water for one day’s testing? Members of our team have been to hundreds, perhaps thousands, of probe stands; no two are alike. Think about how you move around your testing area, and put the instruments you use where you need them. Label them with permanent marker so you don’t mistakenly grab the wrong item. There’s no limit to how much you can improve your SOP. We know because we regularly review and streamline our own; but in your environment, you’re the expert.
4. Calibrate your grinder. Did you know that the specification for GMO grind is 60-70% through a #20 mesh sieve, but over 95% is required for mycotoxin testing? It is so important to get all the mycotoxins into solution as quickly as possible and the best way to do that is to perfect your grind. How do you know you’re hitting those ranges? Use a #20 sieve and weigh out 100g of kernels. Grind them as you normally would, and if 65g goes through the sieve and 35g remain, you’re all set for a GMO test.

If you have any questions about protocol, what is specific to you and your testing, or if you want to review it with someone, please give our Technical Service team a call at (866) 408-4597 x2. They’re always happy to hear from you and are genuinely invested in your success.

We have the highest quality standards in the industry. We take out all the stops to make sure every lot that leaves the building will perform exactly like the one that just left. Once you get that all-important sample extract, it doesn’t matter which strip in your EnviroLogix kit you use, the result is going to be the same.

Our pledge to you is to provide consistent and accurate tests you can rely on, season after season. Above all we want you to be fair…fair to your suppliers and fair to your customers. The best way we can do that is to make sure you understand how to test the right way and to provide you test solutions you can rely on.

Already using QuickScan to test for GMO traits in corn? Find out how easy it is to add mycotoxin testing—ensuring quality in your corn supply and unleash the power of QuickScan to meet safety goals and audit compliance.

EnviroLogix has made testing even easier for the big three (Aflatoxin, Vomitoxin/DON, Fumonisin) with a Common Extraction protocol:

What to do next?

• Learn more about mycotoxin testing
• Learn more about common extraction
• View the EnviroLogix catalog

Mycotoxin contamination is one of the key food safety concerns covered by the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). In food for human consumption, the presence of mycotoxins has been associated with cancer and developmental defects. In animal feed, elevated mycotoxins can have a negative impact milk production, weight gain, fertility and general health. The FDA has set aflatoxin, fumonisin, and DON recommended limits for human food at 0.5 ppb – 4 ppm. In animal feed, the recommended limits cover a wide range, depending on the animal and feed type; for more details you can consult this guide from the USDA.

Whether your facility is directly regulated by FSMA, or you’re a supplier to a FSMA-regulated facility, a robust quality system will help you meet the stringent requirements. The FDA has provided the Food Safety Plan Builder, a complex desktop application to help such facilities create a clear, thorough FSMA-compliance plan for delivering a “say what you do, and do what you say” food safety system.

Quantitative test kits for mycotoxins from EnviroLogix will guide you in making critical decisions about incoming commodities as well as those in storage. QuickScan software can help you see trends in your data and help you meet FSMA documentation requirements at the same time. QuickScan II can store up to 100,000 full-page reports, and results data can be exported to a spreadsheet to simplify record-keeping and allow additional analysis as needed.

If you are unsure how to save QuickScan data, you can follow the instructions in this guide or contact our Technical Support experts toll-free at (866) 408-4597 x2 or via the contact page on the EnviroLogix website.

Sources:

• United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)
• United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
• World Health Organization: Mycotoxins and Health Risks (WHO)

How QuickCheck and QuickScan Support Your Quality Systems

QuickCheck is a mycotoxin check sample program introduced by EnviroLogix in our continuing support of your quality programs. QuickCheck leverages all the inherent quality features of the QuickScan System for Quality Programs, Compliance and Audits, and Troubleshooting QuickScan’s quality reminders/enforcement and on-board data traceability further enhances a comprehensive quality program, as well as supporting programs like FSMA, Non-GMO Project Verified, and others.

Check samples are nothing new, and many companies already use commercially-available reference samples. They comprise a key component of a comprehensive quality program by:

• Assessing if your equipment and operators are producing accurate results
• Comparing to a single “true” data point
• Giving confidence that results being generated remain accurate

But QuickCheck is more than just check samples.

Utilizing an on-line portal that can be accessed from anywhere at any time, the QuickCheck program delivers a unique and innovative experience for operators and managers alike.

• Operators receive immediate feedback when entering results: within range or outside the range of acceptable results
• Managers log in to view a customizable dashboard to review individual or compiled results. They can also set up alerts or flags for individual, compiled, and/or trending results.

It is this critical juncture where QuickCheck allows you to gain insight and control over variables that can dramatically affect testing accuracy…we have shown that equipment & protocol errors can cause 25% variability in results—or more (see graphic here).  The ability to proactively address issues before they become problems builds a strong foundation for a comprehensive quality plan.

Keep in mind these important points when building, improving, and enhancing your quality systems:

• Be assured that you are buying and selling at the “right” price, solidifying your reputation with your suppliers and customers.
• Be confident in the quality of materials entering your facility to instill confidence in the product coming out.

With so many variables affecting your finished product, proactively addressing issues before they become problems is a must.

In a statement on December 20, 2018, Sonny Perdue, the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, introduced the National Bioengineered Food Disclosure Standard (NBFDS). This announcement builds on Congress’ July 2017 National Bioengineered Food Disclosure Law, which required the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) to create a national mandatory standard governing the disclosure of food that is or may be bioengineered.

Any foods that contain a detectable genetic trait that has been modified by specific laboratory methods, and that could not be produced via traditional breeding or found in nature, is affected by the new standard. The standard’s date of implementation is January 1, 2020; with an exception for small food manufacturers, who have been given an additional year to bring themselves into compliance.

A list of bioengineered foods to identify crops/food available in a bioengineered form was developed by the Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), and for which meticulous records must be maintained by regulated businesses. Such record keeping will be used as the means by which suppliers determine whether they must disclose food as bioengineered.

Most importantly, this new standard requires manufacturers of food, as well as importers and some retailers, to ensure proper disclosure of bioengineered foods. There are several options for disclosure, including text, the green “bioengineered” symbol, electronic or digital links, and/or by text message. For small food manufacturers, or for small food or very small food packages, a phone number or web address are also acceptable.

The NBFDS does differ from the Non-GMO Project Standard in what is required to be labeled and the threshold for labeling. The NBFDS does not require the labeling of highly processed ingredients derived from GMO sources and the products of animals (meat, eggs, dairy) fed GMO feed. In addition, the NBFDS does not consider new genetic editing techniques like CRISPR or TALEN to be GMO and their products are exempt from labeling. The Non-GMO Project and European Union have ruled that the before mentioned genetic editing techniques are considered GMOs. The NBFDS establishes the threshold for inadvertent or technically unavoidable presence of GMO’s at 5% per ingredient. This differs from the 0.9% GMO threshold used by the Non-GMO Project.

For more information about the NBFDS and compliance please contact Jamie Welch at jwelch@envirologix.com.

Sources:

1. Bioengineered Food Disclosure Standard Dec 21 2018
2. Feedstuffs.com, Oct 2 2018

With 2018 being dubbed a “perfect storm” for a rise in mycotoxin rates worldwide, a new threat has come to the forefront of news—and concern—among those who handle corn: Fumonisin.

Conversations about mycotoxins are generally centered around Aflatoxin and Vomitoxin (DON), which are the most prevalent and regulated threats to grain worldwide. But in the Southeast and High Plains of the U.S., as well as Eastern Europe and the Iberian Peninsula, Fumonisin in this year’s corn crop has reached notable levels, and has been directly linked to adverse health and death loss in poultry, swine and horses.

K-State Research and Extension Service announced several incidents in north-central Kansas, warning that corn producers and those feeding corn to livestock need to be aware of the potential for Fumonisin in their corn past harvest through storage and beyond. Even if Fumonisin is at very low levels when tested going into storage, it will thrive and proliferate if conditions are not monitored and moisture controlled. Best practice dictates it be tested again when coming out of storage for this reason.

Ranges of concern for Fumonisin include >1 ppm for equine diets and >10 ppm for swine feed; as a point of reference, some of the corn analyzed in north-central Kansas showed Fumonisin concentrations >100ppm, with some as high as 700 ppm.

At a gathering of producers in Texas, the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service noted that many producers had never even heard of Fumonisin in their area. Although historically not common in Texas, wildly fluctuating temperatures around harvest time can cause Fumonisin to grow exponentially in the field. With the recent unpredictability of weather patterns, these experts recommended growers keep fusarium ear rot resistance and heat resistance in mind when choosing which varieties of corn to plant moving forward.

Further, it is infrequently that a single mycotoxin is found in isolation. Though little is known with certainty, it is highly suspected that multiple mycotoxin consumption has additive and possibly synergistic detrimental effects on animal health.

All of the experts agree that regardless of weather conditions, historical data, or word-of-mouth opinions about the quality of crops, all grain should be tested for multiple mycotoxins in order to assure its suitability for downstream uses.

Sources:

1. Abilene Reflector Chronicle, Nov 5 2018;
2. Feedstuffs.com, Jan 9 2019;
3. Drovers.com, Mar 5 2018

In an ever-evolving global agriculture landscape, improving the use of data with the latest collection and analysis tools from EnviroLogix will bolster revenue, increase customer satisfaction and maximize efficiencies. EnviroLogix has a long history of providing the agriculture industry with point of need diagnostics that drive better decisions for incoming grain. However, if you’re only using a test result for a quick decision on whether to accept a truck and what discount to apply, you’re only getting part of the story.

When it comes to decisions, your inbound grain procurement area creates many pieces of data for your day-to-day operations, most of which is of no cost to you. Analytical assays are some of the only on-site data points you pay to create. Make them work more for you by doing a deep data dive into the better decision that could be influenced by further analysis. You can leverage your data trends over time to evaluate suppliers, accept discounted grain without compromising cumulative bin quality, and track quality system performance.

In the information age, it’s easy to get overwhelmed with data and waste time on analysis and tracking that doesn’t add value. The QuickScan II reader makes quick analyses easy with some new tools that we’ve added to our flagship platform. Here are a couple of examples of data trends you can pull from your system that will help you get the most from our diagnostics:

Aflatoxin trends over time: In green, this QuickScan II graph shows a running average for incoming grain over the course of two months; while red shows the daily averages. By comparing daily averages to running averages, you can keep track of where your cumulative grain levels are and the impacts that high contamination days have. Despite a few days with daily averages above 10ppb, a grain manager can clearly see that overall, cumulative average aflatoxin levels remain below 10ppb.

Aflatoxin results by supplier: If you want to take a deeper dive on your daily and running averages to figure out where contamination might be coming from, you can use your QuickScan data to pull out results for individual suppliers and compare them back to your overall averages. In this very simple example, we can see that the high daily average (red) observed in the middle can be traced back to “Farmer Sue” (green), but her overall aflatoxin results over time are not a cause for concern.

If you’re interested in adding tracking tools to your business, please let your sales rep know you’re interested in a QuickScan II demo! In addition to the data analysis tools, we’ve also added inventory management so you know when you won’t run out of the test strips you need to evaluate incoming grain. We’re just getting started with data analytics – these tools are the tip of the iceberg. EnviroLogix prides itself on our customer-centric approach to grain diagnostics – if you have feedback on our current data tools or want to make a suggestion for something that would benefit your business, we’d love to hear from you.

There are several agencies that evaluate mycotoxin detection test kits for performance against accuracy and precision criteria and issue an official Certification for the product test method. In the United States, the Agricultural Marketing Service Branch of the USDA (formerly known as GIPSA) oversees such certifications, the requirements of which include a manufacturer-provided data package demonstrating accuracy and robustness performance across three test kit lots, and additional independent testing of three kit lots at the USDA-FGIS evaluation lab. For any submission, the commodity of interest that represents the primary matrix must be tested using the mycotoxin naturally contaminated form of the commodity. This requirement ensures that the test accuracy represents the intended use of the product in the field and accurately represents the mycotoxin recovery from the test method’s extraction step.

Because the USDA thoroughly vets the test internally on the entire detection system (test procedure in combination with the detection and quantitation methods) and requires accuracy across a specified range of mycotoxin contamination of the primary matrix, the downstream test kit user is assured that the method is accurate and precise, providing the user with a trusted result within acceptable variation (allowable relative standard deviation, % RSD).

Additional commodities may also be submitted for certification but are dependent upon the primary matrix evaluation and approval to be considered certified under the umbrella of the test kit certification. Since the method performance was previously determined as sound using the primary matrix, additional matrices can be evaluated using mycotoxin fortification as opposed to natural contamination. The USDA-FGIS lab considers performance results without running verification testing on secondary matrices unless the extraction protocol is different from the primary matrix, in which case, performance is verified. Rapid lateral flow devices can be highly kinetic in that they are sensitive to variations in flow rate. Because the composition of different commodities can vary greatly, these variations may impact flow rate, which in turn, can impact performance when interpreted using the standard curve established for the primary matrix; this is called a ‘matrix effect’. When a matrix effect is present, the results can still be in an acceptable range, as defined by a certification body, but a bias might exist, either high or low, depending on the direction of the matrix effect. Instead of accepting biased results that are in range for secondary matrices, EnviroLogix takes the extra step to re-center the performance for each group of similar matrixes to provide the best possible accuracy for all commodities. This is done by providing lot specific matrix group curves in the form of a multi-matrix barcode card (MMBC), allowing the end user to test secondary matrices with confidence.

The AOAC International standards organization also provides test method certifications through its Performance Tested Method (PTM) program and is recognized internationally for its accreditation of test kit methods. This PTM program follows a similar validation process as the USDA, however, a third-party laboratory is contracted for the independent lab evaluation portion. Many of our mycotoxin products are certified by both the AOAC International and the USDA-ARS. Visit our website for a complete listing of our product certifications.