Mycotoxin contamination in rice is caused by the development
of fungi species that have a potential capacity to produce these
secondary metabolites which, for human beings, can be harmful at
a minor or major degree.
The development of fungal inocula in the grain occurs in the
field, during its formation, or in the warehouse, if the latter is not
adequately treated during the processing of the grain. The presence
or absence of mycotoxins depends on different factors such as the
isolate in it, its interactions with other organisms on the substrate
where they coexist, the production area and its climatology or the
agricultural and post-harvest practices, amongst others.
Reddy and Sathyanarayana (2001) listed 143 different fungi
species that were found in rice. But the isolates majorly described
as mycotoxigenic belong to the genera Aspergillus, Penicillium and
Fusarium