Occurrence and Contamination Level of Ochratoxin A in Tissues of Slaughtered Pigs in Greece

(Western Macedonia, Thessaly, Central Greece, Central Macedonia). The ochratoxin A presence in blood serum, kidney, liver, muscle, and fatty tissues in samples of slaughtered pigs was examined by using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay method. None of all kidney, liver, muscle, and fat samples were found ochratoxin A contaminated. A total of 579 (45.95%) of the 1260 analyzed serum samples were ochratoxin A contaminated in a range from 0.21 to 5.39 μ g/mL (mean level 0.66 μ g/mL) and ochratoxin A was present in serum in 65 (77.38%) of the 84 examined farms. The mean levels of ochratoxin A serum contamination in regions of Western Macedonia, Central Greece, and Central Macedonia were similar (0.29-0.32 μ g/mL). The highest ochratoxin A value (mean 1.20 μ g/L, median 0.53 μ g/L) with the highest coefficient of variation (1.12) was found in the Thessaly region. Although ochratoxin A was not found in pork meat in Greece, the presence of ochratoxin A in pig serum requires continuous och-ratoxin A monitoring in the swine industry and pork meat.