Monitoring of Aflatoxin B1 in Maize under the EFISC-GTP Scheme

Monitoring of Aflatoxin B1 in Maize under the EFISC-GTP Scheme
High levels of Aflatoxin B1 pose a real safety risk to the European feed and food market. Contamination can occur both in the field — due to mould growth under certain temperature and humidity conditions — and after harvest, during the storage and drying of maize.

For this reason, EFISC-GTP has developed a dedicated protocol for monitoring Aflatoxin B1 in maize and maize co-products — the EFISC-GTP Addendum – Aflatoxin Protocol. The protocol applies to operators certified under Scopes D, F, and G: processors, traders, and collectors of maize intended for food or feed use.
Countries of origin of maize are divided into three risk categories: low, medium, and high. The required monitoring frequency depends on the assigned risk category.

Sampling and laboratory analysis are carried out in accordance with the rules established in the protocol. Analyses must be performed by a laboratory accredited to ISO 17025.
Reporting Results to EFISC-GTP

Certified companies are required to report their Aflatoxin B1 analysis results to EFISC-GTP on a monthly basis using the official template and indicating whether the material is intended for feed or food use.
The data is processed confidentially and shared with other mutually recognized schemes only in anonymized form. These results also serve as the basis for the monthly review of country risk classifications.

For each lot, the template requires the following information:

• date of sampling;
• consignment type — vessel, barge, truck, train, or other. The consignment name may be anonymized, for example, A, B, C, etc.;
• product type — maize or maize co-products;
• sampling at loading for each lot;
• sampling at discharge for each lot — yes or no;
• country of origin;
• quantity per lot in metric tonnes;
• sampling rules applied;
• analysis method, Limit of Detection (LOD), and Limit of Quantification (LOQ);
• measurement uncertainty;
• results: Aflatoxin B1 (µg/kg) and the sum of Aflatoxins B1, B2, G1, and G2 (µg/kg).

Note: Starch Europe industries, as well as other maize-processing companies that source maize exclusively from traders certified under EFISC-GTP Scopes G or F or under mutually recognized schemes, are exempt from the monthly reporting obligation. This prevents the duplication of data already submitted at an earlier stage of the supply chain.

Recent Changes as of 18 September 2026
EFISC-GTP has issued an updated version of the protocol, consolidating and replacing the previously separate protocols for Starch Europe industries and Coreal traders and collectors.

Based on the assessment of this season’s data, the risk classifications for the following countries were changed at the beginning of the 2026/2027 harvest:

• Slovakia and Ukraine — raised from low to medium risk;
• Hungary — raised from medium to high risk.

The full text of the EFISC-GTP Aflatoxin Protocol, as well as the reporting template, can be requested by emailing info@certgic.com.