Mycotoxins in Fruits and Vegetables

Fungi play a substantial role in spoilage of fruits and vegetables, because of their pathogenicity to the harvested products. In the various stages of pathogenesis, some of these fungi generate different mycotoxins - secondary metabolites that are toxic to humans and animals that consume the products. During the last decades, various fruits and vegetables that are essential parts of our daily diet have been added to the list of products exposed to mycotoxin contamination. Some of these mycotoxins are known to be carcinogenic, and most of them are highly stable during processing and, therefore, can reach the consumer.