Ergot alkaloids in cereal products: results from the Bavarian Health and Food Safety Authority.

The danger of ergot alkaloids has been well known for centuries. The origin and toxicology of these compounds have been clarified and flour mills assure us that they have mastered the problem technologically. Nevertheless, one can find food products with sometimes relatively high contents of these toxic alkaloids. Here we report on our experiences and results of an LC-MS/MS-method which we have developed to determine ergot alkaloids and which was applied to commercial products during the past two years.