Farmer’s lung disease is caused by inhaling the spores of the fungus from stored food grains or moldy hay.

• Mold spores which are produced by micro organisms which grow in baled hay, stored grain, or silage with a high moisture content (30 percent) are main causes of Farmer’s Lung. They become active when temperatures reach 70 degrees Fahrenheit in poorly ventilated areas.
• Farmer’s Lung is also more common on dairy farms, especially those not equipped with automated equipment for handling hay or feed.
• Heavy concentrations of mold spores appear as a dry, white or gray powder in grain or forage. When the feed is moved, billions of these microscopic sized particles become airborne and attach themselves to dust.
• These particles pass through the nose, hair, and throat, mucous and accumulate in the lungs where they can cause an allergic type of pneumonia.
• Organic antigens-thermophilic actinomycetes^[1]
• Inorganic substances- isocyanate