Fumonisin B1: Environmental Health Criteria Series No. 219

This book evaluates the risks to human and animal health posed by the consumption of maize and maize-based products contaminated with fumonisin B1. This naturally occurring mycotoxin, produced by the mould Fusarium verticillioides, is found in high concentrations throughout the world, and is believed to be the most prevalent and toxic of the fumonisins. Consumption is known to cause two fatal diseases in farm animals. Possible adverse effects on human health are of particular importance in several developing countries, where maize and maize-based products are the staple food for large populations.