Impact of ethnic pre-harvest practices on the occurrence of Fusarium verticillioides and fumonisin B1 in maize fields from Vietnam

• Published in: Food control Vol. 120; p. 107567
• Main Authors: Tran, Minh Trang, Ameye, Maarten, Thi-Kim Phan, Lien, Devlieghere, Frank, De Saeger, Sarah, Eeckhout, Mia, Audenaert, Kris
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier Ltd 01.02.2021
• Subjects: Fumonisin B1; Fusarium verticillioides; Maize; Mycotoxins; Pre-harvest practices; Small-holder farmers; Vietnam; Pre-harvest practices; Fumonisin B1; Vietnam; Fusarium verticillioides; Small-holder farmers; Mycotoxins; Maize
• ISSN: 0956-7135; 1873-7129
• DOI: 10.1016/j.foodcont.2020.107567

Besides conducive environmental factors in the tropics, pre-harvest practices significantly correlate to an increased contamination of crops by plant pathogens and related mycotoxins. Small-holder ethnic farmers are a vulnerable group in the face of these contaminations. Therefore, this study aimed to clarify the impact of traditional pre-harvest practices on the occurrence of Fusarium verticillioides and fumonisins in maize fields of two Vietnamese small-holder ethnic communities. Sampling along with a questionnaire for the inventory of pre-harvest practices was performed in the Ede (n = 18) and Kinh (n = 13) households from Vietnam between late December 2017 and early January 2019. As a result, the CP888-line fields planted by 39% of the Kinh households accumulated a higher median FB1 level of 987 ± 843 μg kg−1 compared to the NK7328-line fields (0 ± 5 μg kg−1) planted by 67% of the Ede households (p-value < 0.05). Mono-cropping system (applied by 72% of the Ede and 54% of the Kinh) increased the incidence of FB1 contamination in maize fields by roughly 50% compared to mixed-cropping system. Also, the crop residues-free fields had lower the incidence of FB1 (29%, n = 17) than the fields with crop residues (71%, n = 14). Otherwise, tillage practices, pest management, and irrigation did not affect significantly FB1 contamination in their maize fields. •Small-holder farms are a vulnerable group in the face of tropical plant pathogens and mycotoxin contamination.•Maize fields of Vietnamese small-holder farms are contaminated with Fusarium verticillioides and fumonisins.•Poor pre-harvest practices of small-holder farmers are a key cause of the increased contamination of maize fields.•Mixed-cropping system minimizes the pre-harvest contamination of maize in small-holder farms.•Removal of crop residue is an effective tool for the mitigation of F. verticillioides and fumonisins in maize fields.