Genetically Modified Crops (GMC): Their Safety and Wholesomeness in livestock

Nilufar Haque, Asraf Hossain

1Dairy Cattle Physiology Division 2Dairy Cattle Nutrition Division National Dairy Research Institute, Karnal

Email of corresponding author: drasrafvet@gmail.com

Abstract :

Genetically modified (GM) major feed crops have been recently developed and disseminated to produce animal feeds and fibrous material. The adoption of genetically enhanced crops by growers has increased substantially. New varieties of plants resistant to pests and/or tolerant to specific herbicides such as maize, soybean, cotton, sugar beets, canola, have been recently developed by using genetic transformation (GT). These plants contain detectable specific active recombinant DNA (rDNA) and their derived protein. However, rDNA has never been recovered either in milk, or in liver, spleen and muscles tissues of animals, or in rumen bacteria. In addition, feed intake, weight gain, milk yield and nutritional equivalence expressed as feed conversion and/or digestibility of nutrients have never been affected by feeding animals diets containing GT plants. In all the experimental animals, the body and carcass composition, the composition of milk and animal tissues, as well as the sensory properties of meat are not modified by the use of feeds derived from GT plants. Furthermore, the health of animals, their physiological characteristics and the survival rate are also not affected. Scientific methods used for the assessment of the safety and recommendations for the dissemination of new plants including their massive use in animal feeding have been always appropriate to detect eventual defects on health of animals and performance. Inevitably, where food safety standards are concerned, it is desirable for consumer safety to have levels of international harmonisation recognising the need to maintain the best practices commensurate with ongoing scientific developments and national or international variations in diets. It can be suggested that in vivo tests on high producing animals are necessary and sufficient to evaluate the safety and the nutritional value of new GT plants.