Mycotoxin limits in food and feed

Maximum levels and guidance values in the European Union, the United States and Canada, for the mycotoxins most often measured in cereals, maize and animal feed. Every figure below is taken from the official text named beside it, and each source is linked at the foot of the page so it can be checked against the original.

Last reviewed 2026-11-05 · maintained by TripleBond Scientific Inc., Guelph, Ontario

• EU — food
• EU — feed, from 2027
• United States — FDA
• Canada — CFIA
• Units and how levels are expressed
• Common questions
• Sources

European Union — maximum levels in food

Set by Commission Regulation (EU) 2023/915, which replaced Regulation (EC) No 1881/2006. The deoxynivalenol entries below are those introduced by Regulation (EU) 2024/1022, applicable since 1 July 2024, and the T-2 and HT-2 levels became binding maximum levels under Regulation (EU) 2024/1038 at the same date. Unlike the United States and Canada, these are legally binding maximum levels: food exceeding them may not be placed on the EU market, and it may not be mixed with compliant food to bring it below the level.

Aflatoxins µg/kg

Reference standard for this analyte: Aflatoxin B1 standard →

Deoxynivalenol (DON) µg/kg

Reference standard for this analyte: Deoxynivalenol (DON) standard →

Zearalenone (ZEN) µg/kg

Reference standard for this analyte: Zearalenone standard →

Fumonisins (sum of B1 and B2) µg/kg

Reference standard for this analyte: Fumonisin B1 standard →

T-2 and HT-2 toxins (sum) µg/kg

Reference standard for this analyte: T-2 toxin standard →

European Union — guidance values for feed, from 1 July 2027

Commission Recommendation (EU) 2026/1801. These are guidance values rather than binding maxima: they are what Member States apply when judging whether feed is acceptable. Values are in mg/kg (ppm) relative to a feedingstuff with 12% moisture, so a result reported on another moisture basis has to be converted first. For complementary feed, the complete-feed value applies after adjusting for the proportion of the daily ration.

Aflatoxin B1 in feed is the exception: it is a binding maximum level under Directive 2002/32/EC on undesirable substances in animal feed, not a guidance value, and is unaffected by this Recommendation.

Deoxynivalenol (DON) mg/kg (ppm) at 12% moisture

Zearalenone (ZEN) mg/kg (ppm) at 12% moisture

Fumonisins B1 + B2 mg/kg (ppm) at 12% moisture

T-2 and HT-2 toxins mg/kg (ppm) at 12% moisture

Ochratoxin A mg/kg (ppm) at 12% moisture

United States — FDA action and advisory levels

The FDA does not set mycotoxin limits by regulation. It publishes action levels in Compliance Policy Guides and advisory or guidance levels in guidance documents. An action level is the point above which the FDA may consider a food or animal food adulterated under section 402(a)(1) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. The agency states that these levels do not bind the courts, the industry or the agency, and that enforcement is still possible below them.

Aflatoxin B1 and DON standards: Aflatoxin B1 → Deoxynivalenol →

For aflatoxins in animal food, the FDA has separate, higher action levels for some classes of mature food-producing animals, set out in CPG 683.100. The 20 ppb figure in the table applies to immature animals, dairy animals, pets of all ages, and any case where the intended use is unknown.

Canada — CFIA levels for livestock feed

From the CFIA's RG-8 regulatory guidance on contaminants in feed. Only aflatoxin B1 is a legislated standard; the rest are regulatory guidelines. The CFIA also notes that contaminated feed should not make up more than half of an animal's diet even where the level itself is met. Canada does not publish a feed guideline for fumonisins.

Units and how the levels are expressed

The three regimes do not use the same conventions, which is the usual source of error when a result is compared against the wrong figure.

• 1 ppm = 1 mg/kg = 1 000 ppb = 1 000 µg/kg. EU food limits are written in µg/kg; EU feed guidance and the North American levels are usually in mg/kg or ppm.
• EU feed guidance values are relative to feed at 12% moisture. A result on an as-fed or dry-matter basis must be converted before comparison.
• Several EU limits apply to the dry matter of the product as placed on the market, and the unprocessed oat limit applies to the grain with the inedible husk included.
• Fumonisin levels are the sum of B1 and B2, calculated as lower-bound concentrations: values below the limit of quantification count as zero.
• Aflatoxin limits appear both as B1 alone and as the sum of B1, B2, G1 and G2. Check which one a specification refers to before reporting against it.

Common questions

Sources

• Commission Regulation (EU) 2023/915, consolidated text of 1 January 2025 — maximum levels for contaminants in food
• Commission Regulation (EU) 2024/1022 — revised deoxynivalenol levels, applicable from 1 July 2024
• Commission Recommendation (EU) 2026/1801 — guidance values for mycotoxins in feed, applicable from 1 July 2027
• US FDA, Chemical Contaminants Transparency Tool
• US FDA, Action Levels for Poisonous or Deleterious Substances in Human Food and Animal Feed
• Canadian Food Inspection Agency, RG-8 Regulatory Guidance: Contaminants in Feed