• Universitat de València

When cereals come from the field, they are stored in silos of different sizes. Depending on the humidity and temperature present inside the storage site, these products can be contaminated to a greater or lesser degree with fungi. They use cereals as a substratum to produce mycotoxins, considered to be one of most powerful natural compounds from the toxicological viewpoint and with the greatest consequences on consumer health.

In addition, it has a great economic impact since, grain storage is the stage where the greatest losses are caused by problems related to the conservation conditions and fungi cause most of the problems due to heating, compaction and deterioration of grains.

The strategies commonly used in the silage industry for the reduction of toxigenic fungi are mainly physical and biological in nature, such as the control of grain humidity and temperature, only viable in small-scale silos; the use of inoculants that significantly improve fungal control, but greatly alters the nutritional characteristics of the treated products, the use of insecticide / antifungal molecules based on synthetic substances or synthetic additives that are normally used to increase the shelf life of food.

There is therefore a need to reduce the growth of mycotoxin-producing fungi in cereal grains during its storage and/or transportation.

The present invention consists of an antifungal device capable of reducing the growth of mycotoxin-producing fungi in cereals grains during its storage and/or transportation. This novel technology is based on the use of a bioactive gel in which an extremely active volatile natural molecule is found as an antifungal. Since it is a completely natural bioactive compound, the organoleptic characteristics of cereals are not altered and it also maintains the nutritional characteristics of the treated product unchanged, without causing any toxicological problem, in addition to being compatible with the environment and being easy to apply.

This innovative technology has been validated for its application in the increasing shelf life of cereals in storage phase. It could be applied to most susceptible products of being contaminated with packaged mycotoxin-producing fungi, such as cereals, fresh or semi-cured cheese, industrial tin of loaf, bakery products, nuts, prepared doughs, fourth range fruit or industrial cold meats such as boiled and serrano ham, mortadella, Iberian salami-type sausage, chorizo, etc.

The main advantages provided by the invention are:

• Reducing the growth of mycotoxin-producing fungi in cereals grains during its storage and/or transportation.
• Reducing consumer exposure to synthetic additives and, consequently, reducing the impact on health, using a completely clean technology, while maintaining the same cost.
• Improved results with regard to synthetic additives.