Preventing the post-harvest microbial growth and mycotoxin production in Fusarium head blight infected malting barley

Methods that prevent post-harvest microbial growth and mycotoxin production in Fusarium head blight infected malting barley were evaluated. The objectives of the study included (a) To evaluate the effects of electron-beam radiation and hot water treatments on the safety and quality of Fusarium-infected malting barley and (b) To evaluate the effect of gaseous ozone and hydrogen peroxide treatments for reducing Fusarium survival in malting barley. We found that both hot water and electron-beam irradiation treatments have potential as physical treatments to decrease the level of Fusarium infection and mycotoxin production during the malting process. Electron-beam radiation had a more pronounced effect on the malt quality parameters than hot water treatments. For the second objective, both ozone and hydrogen peroxide appear to have potential for treating mildly FHB-infected malting barley. Hydrogen peroxide treatments achieved greater levels of Fusarium reduction with no impact on germination for most of the treatments. Ozone also caused a significant decrease in Fusarium levels without effecting the germination in good quality barley.