Canada holding imports of Indian corn

May 27, 2015

Corn will be tested for aflatoxins

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) announced that it has started to hold Indian imports of feed corn so that it can be tested for aflatoxins.

According to the United States National Library of Medicine, aflatoxins are “toxins produced by a mold that grows in nuts, seeds and legumes.”

Iowa State University states that aflatoxins can kill livestock and is considered carcinogenic to humans and animals.

Aflatoxins can be found in peanuts and peanut butter, tree nuts including pecans, corn, wheat and oil seeds including cottonseed.

In a release, the CFIA said the testing is effective immediately and will detain “all incoming shipments of corn imported from India, including organic corn.”

Corn seeds

Corn importers are now required to sample the corn and provide the CFIA with the results.

“Sampling must be done immediately after arrival at the Canadian destination because mold can grow and produce aflatoxins during shipping,” the CFIA release said.

The CFIA requires the following information to accompany the corn testing:

Date of sampling
Date of analysis
Analysis for total aflatoxins and for aflatoxin B1
Unit of measurement expressed in parts per billion (ppb)
Name of the method(s) used to generate the CoA
Each result indicated by the limit of quantification and/or limit of detection; and
The name and signature of the personnel responsible for carrying out the analyses
Laboratory name

he acceptable aflatoxin level is no more than 20 parts per billion.

Tell us your thoughts on the new CFIA testing of imported corn from India. Does it encourage you about the quality of corn you produce on your farm?

Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.