20世纪90年代末，欧盟决定协调黄曲霉素标准（黄曲霉素是某些霉菌产生的有毒成分族 ） ， 八个成员国 — — 包括意大利、荷兰和西班牙 — — 大幅度提高了国家标准，这或许就是非洲国家队欧洲的谷物、水果干和坚果对欧出口下降6.7亿美元的原因。
In the late 1990’s, when the EU decided to harmonize standards for aflatoxins (a group of toxic compounds produced by certain molds), eight member states – including Italy, the Netherlands, and Spain – raised their national standards substantially, which is likely to have caused African exports of cereals, dried fruits, and nuts to Europe to decline by as much as $670 million.