Amendment to mycotoxin regulations in food: what changes for the food industry in 2026

Key data

If your company produces, imports, exports or analyzes food susceptible to mycotoxin contamination, this corrigendum affects you directly. The Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/2782, published on 14 December 2023, establishes the sampling and analysis methods for mycotoxin control in food and repealed the previous Regulation (EC) No 401/2006. Now, through this corrigendum (CELEX:32023R2782R(03)), the European Commission corrects material errors in the wording and technical specifications of the original text.

Although the corrections do not modify the substance of the regulation, they do affect the technical specifications that laboratories and food operators must apply in their controls. Working with the erroneous version may expose your company to failing audits or official controls.

What does this regulation establish?

Regulation (EU) 2023/2782 is the European framework that regulates how samples are taken and how mycotoxins in food are analyzed for official controls. This corrigendum corrects material errors or incorrect wording detected in the original text, without changing the substantive obligations.

The mycotoxins regulated by this regulation include:

• Aflatoxins (aflatoxin B1, B2, G1, G2 and aflatoxin M1)
• Ochratoxin A
• Fumonisins (fumonisin B1 and B2)
• Other mycotoxins covered by EU contaminant regulations

The food products especially affected by these controls are:

• Cereals and derived products
• Nuts (peanuts, pistachios, almonds, hazelnuts, Brazil nuts, etc.)
• Spices
• Tree nuts
• Other products susceptible to fungal contamination

Economic and operational impact

This corrigendum does not introduce new economic obligations or modify maximum mycotoxin limits. However, it has direct operational consequences for any company that performs or commissions analytical controls:

• Review of internal procedures: Accredited laboratories and quality departments must verify that their sampling and analysis protocols comply with the corrected version of the regulation, not the original version with errors.
• Risk of non-compliance: Applying incorrect technical specifications may invalidate analytical results in an official inspection, with direct consequences for product commercialization.
• Product recalls and sanctions: Non-compliance with the limits and procedures established may result in product recalls from the market and administrative sanctions by the competent authorities.
• Impact on exports: Food exporters to other Member States or third countries must ensure that their controls comply with the current and corrected version of the regulation.

Who does it affect?

• Food industry: Manufacturers, processors and distributors of cereals, nuts, spices and other products susceptible to fungal contamination.
• Accredited laboratories: Laboratories that perform mycotoxin analysis for official controls or for private operators.
• Health and official control authorities: Competent bodies that carry out controls at border or in the market.
• Food exporters: Companies that market food products in the European or international market and must demonstrate regulatory compliance.
• Importers: Operators that introduce into the EU products from third countries with risk of mycotoxin contamination.

Practical example

A nut exporting company (pistachios and almonds) operating from Spain to other European markets commissions aflatoxin analysis to an accredited laboratory before each shipment. The laboratory applies the sampling protocol established in Regulation (EU) 2023/2782.

If the laboratory was using the original version of the regulation—which contained material errors in the technical specifications—and has not updated its protocol with the corrections from corrigendum R(03), the analytical results may not be valid before an official inspection at destination. This could result in the retention or recall of the batch at the border, with the economic and reputational cost that this entails.

The solution is simple: the laboratory must download the consolidated and corrected version of the regulation from EUR-Lex and update its standard operating procedures (SOPs) before the next analysis cycle.

What should companies do now?

1. Download the corrected version of the regulation: Access EUR-Lex and download the consolidated text of Regulation (EU) 2023/2782 with corrigendum R(03) incorporated. Do not work with the original version published in December 2023.
2. Review sampling and analysis procedures: Compare the corrected technical specifications with the protocols currently applied by your laboratory or analytical provider. Identify any discrepancies.
3. Update standard operating procedures (SOPs): If differences are detected, update the SOPs before the next official control cycle or internal audit.
4. Communicate the change to analytical suppliers: If you outsource analyses, inform your accredited laboratory of the existence of this corrigendum and request confirmation that they work with the corrected version.
5. Verify the impact on affected products: Prioritize the review for cereals, nuts and spices, which are the products with the greatest exposure to aflatoxins, ochratoxin A and fumonisins.
6. Document the update: Keep a record of the review carried out as evidence before possible inspections by the competent authorities.

Official source

Consult complete regulation in official source

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. For specific decisions, consult a qualified professional. Source: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/./legal-content/AUTO/?uri=CELEX:32023R2782R(03)