Mycotoxins - secondary metabolites of moulds – can lead to adverse health effects in livestock and cause economic losses worldwide. Yet, the presence of mycotoxins in Austrian dairy feeds and its impact on dairy health and fertility is largely unknown. Within the subproject 2.5 an extensive mycotoxin survey on 100 Austrian dairy farms will be performed with feed components being analysed for more than 400 fungal metabolites. By matching mycotoxin occurrence with dairy health and performance data, potential interlinks will be revealed.

Results will contribute to our understanding of mycotoxins as possible trigger factor for impaired dairy health. Since climate change effects mycotoxin contamination levels in feed, our findings will be of importance for dairying beyond the duration of this project.