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TheHorse.com THE HORSE September 2015
rigorous. Following years of field tests,
the applicant can petition the USDA's
Animal and Plant Health Inspection
Service (APHIS) for nonregulated status
so they can market the product.
2
As far as
the outcomes of feeding these products,
University of California, Davis, research-
ers looked at health data for more than
100 billion animals (cattle, swine, and
poultry) and found that "no significant
differences in feed digestibility, perfor-
mance, or health have been observed in
livestock that consume GE feed."
4
However—mainly due to the cost of
maintaining research herds and to horses'
relatively minor economic impact in the
agricultural industry compared to cattle,
swine, and poultry—no studies have been
done specifically on horses.
And, of course, we've all heard of stud-
ies that have been proven wrong or have
been tainted by financial interests.
Perhaps horse owners are most
concerned about a perceived higher
incidence of allergies and other health
problems following the introduction of
GMO feeds. Adams says that could be due
to our heightened awareness of these is-
sues and veterinarians' ability to diagnose
them. "I don't know that the incidence
is actually greater, but we can test for it
now," he says. "I don't get many requests
for allergy-related feed specifications, but
as time goes by, because it's becoming
more publicized, more people are inter-
ested in an allergy screen."
Can We Avoid GMOs?
The answer is, simply, that it's nearly
impossible to avoid GMO feeds. As of
2013, farmers planted GMO varieties on
95% of sugar beet (beet pulp's source),
93% of soy (a fat and high-quality protein
source), and 90% of all cotton and corn
(the latter a carbohydrate source) acres in
the United States.
4
Even forage crops such as alfalfa are
genetically modified.
Only oats and certified organic feeds
can claim non-GMO horse-feed status,
and even organic fields are subject to
cross-pollination with conventionally
farmed crops via wind and insects.
And, Vandergrift points out, although
beet pulp is often labeled GMO due to its
Roundup resistance, "beet pulp comes
from the part of the plant that grows un-
derground, and glyphosate levels in beet
pulp used in horse feed are close to zero."
At this point in time, GMO labeling
isn't required on any food items, hu-
man or horse. "We buy our feed grains
as commodities," says Adams. "We want
(the best quality) grains, but they aren't
designated as GMO or not. I'm more con-
cerned with the nutrition of that product:
the lack of microtoxins, its cleanliness,
and having grains with specified fiber and
sugar contents."
The cost of certified organic grains sim-
ply puts them out of range for traditional
factory-formulated feeds. But if your bud-
get allows, that's a route you can explore.
It's a topic worth digging more deeply
into. It affects your horse, and it affects
you and your family as well. And they're
worth the time it takes to collect all the
facts available and make an informed
decision about what you'll feed them.
h
NUTRITION
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Diane Rice is a freelance writer, editor, and photographer living in
Lewiston, Idaho. She spends her spare time gardening, reading, and
spending time with her daughters, grandchildren and pets.
Why Producers Go GMO
There are several reasons why farmers might want to use genetically
modifed crops, including:
COLD
RESISTANCE
SPECIFIC TRAITS
DROUGHT
RESISTANCE
REFERENCES
1 James, C. 2013. Global status of commercialized biotech/GM crops: 2013. The International Service for the Acquisition
of Agri-biotech Applications (ISAAA) brief no. 46. ISAAA, Ithaca, NY.
2 Fernandez-Cornejo, S. Wechsler, M. Livingston and L. Mitchell, Genetically Engineered Crops in the United States,
February 2014. United States Department of Agriculture Economic Research Service Report Number 162, ers.usda.gov/
media/1282246/err162.pdf.
3 Paul Vincelli, Extension Plant Pathologist, and Gary Parker, Extension Swine Specialist, Fumonism, Vomitoxin, and Other
Mycotoxins in Corn Produced by Fusarium Fungi, rev. November 2002. University of Kentucky Cooperative Extension,
University of Kentucky – College of Agriculture, publication ID-121, www2.ca.uky.edu/agc/pubs/id/id121/id121.pdf
4 A. L. Van Eenennaam and A. E. Young, Impacts of Genetically Engineered Feedstuffs on Livestock Populations, November
20, 2014. Department of Animal Science, University of California, Davis 95616, animalsciencepublications.org/
publications/jas/pdfs/92/10/4255?search-result=1.
INSECT
RESISTANCE