Effects of feeding corn to chickens?

[seedcorn]

Quote:
Okay--so that makes sense to me. Available nitrogen determines protein levels and amino acid levels. Likewise amounts of vitamins and minerals are going to be somewhat determined by the soil levels and nutrition provided. Therefore I find it VERY hard to believe that corn that yields 10 times as much per acre is going to be as nutritious as corn that yields much less.

Regarding GM corn--just saw an ad for ROUNDUP READY corn. This is what we are talking about folks--corn that has been modified so you can soak the whole field in roundup (glyphosate to be exact) and not kill the corn, supposedly just the weeds. By soaking, I mean aerial spraying. This is the future of our food crops. So they've fed these crops to animals for a few years and haven't seen bad effects, so now you and I get to taste it. I'm not thrilled about eating food that has been raised this way.....

1) Today's corn crop is being fed much better than the open pollinated fields were so the actual end product is much better. (Actual yield differences are 1-5X more for hybrid seed vs open pollinated)Plus open pollinated corn were more prone to molds, diseases, etc so the over-all quality was not good. Check history and see famines.

2) While I understand not liking chemicals being sprayed on feed crops, how do you control the weeds? With weeds, no crop, world can not afford farmers to use petroleum products to run machinery to physically take out weeks (even that is at best marginally effective). Glysophate is so much safer than chemicals previously used--it's not even close.

3) Little known fact is that farmers are the healthiest group of workers but lead the world in cancer rate. Why, think chemicals they use to use. Since glysophate is so much safer, think we haven't turned on to it? No one wants to die of hunger and farmers don't want to die of cancer.

 

[seedcorn]

European consumers, farmers, retailers, NGOs and Governments are leading the global resistance to GM food and farming.

Not sure where writer got his/her information from but this is inaccurate. USA leads the WORLD in testing GMO products. Followed by Asian market who pay the most to USA for non-GMO corn. European market is completely different than ours. How?

1) Rent, inputs are controlled by governments. As are income for farmers.

2) Farmers are heavily subsided by government. In fact Holland is paying dairy farms producing in America & Canada that are owned by Dutch farmers--oh by the way they use BST.

3) While their income is fixed so is their crop as there is very little advantage to produce more since they get the same income per year.

 

[seedcorn]

Quote:
If it's anything like this quote on the web site, I don't need to see it as they have NO IDEA what they are talking about.

“If you’re standing in a field in Iowa, there’s an immense amount of food being grown, none of it edible. The commodity corn, nobody can eat. It must be processed before we can eat it. It’s a raw material—it’s a feedstock for all these other processes. And the irony is that an Iowa farmer can no longer feed himself.”
—Michael Pollan, author of The Omnivore's Dilemma

way too many inacurracies to even start with........on just ONE quote. This person is a sensationalist and has no concept of reality.

 

[rebelcowboysnb]

The point of the documentry is that they dont know anything. I liked it. As far as the accuracy of that quote? No its not but from there point of view it is accurate.

Most people I know will not eat field corn. You can. I grew up eating it. Thats what we had but if I have a choice Ill pass.

 

[sommrluv]

To claim that Roundup or other herbicides aren't harmful is ridiculous. I didn't look back to see what poster said it, but they need to increase their education on what is a salt, and what isn't.

Roundup is detrimental to human cells

http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/tx800218n?cookieSet=1&journalCode=crtoec

And is quickly growing "superweeds". When you eat a GMO corn crop formulated as roundup ready, the plant has been created to ABSORB the pesticide into it's system, without dying. Your food is taking in pesticide just as if it were water. Roundup was meant to replace more harmful pesticides, but because of spreading of the resistant gene to weeds and other plants, now roundup is used IN ADDITION to other pesticides.

In addition to the main ingredient in roundup, it also contains various surfacants, which have been found to be poisonous, even fatal, and various other side effects on everything from lab rats, field mice and other rodents, and human beings.

I normally dislike wikipedia as a source, but this articles sources are great. Read it and scroll down to the bottom to look further into this so-called "safe" chemical.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roundup

 

[chookchick]

I am very familiar with glyphosate (RoundUp et. al.) as I have been in the landscaping and nursery industry for 24 years. I am aware that it is considered relatively benign (for an herbicide) and quickly binds to soil compounds, thus less runoff. But I still fear we will pay the piper one day for our reliance on this product. One thing is for sure--the best way to breed a glyphosate-resistant weed is raise acres and acres of weeds that are sprayed regularly with glyphosate. BTW Roundup Ready seed using farmers use 5-10 times as much glyphosate as conventional seed farmers.

The more I read about GM corn the more disturbing it is to me. In 2007 80% of corn grown was GM, now I am sure it is much higher. If not through the selection of GM seeds, then through cross-pollination. It is becoming difficult to find sources for non GM corn.

I'm aware that it would probably be impossible to feed the current world population without highly hybridized, petro-chemical fertilized, mono-culture raised, pesticide drenched corn. We are not paying enough for our food to raise it in a responsible manner. But there are some of us that are willing to pay more to support sustainable farming methods, and hopefully put the money in the hands of the farmer, instead of in the hands of Cargill or Monsanto. Knowledge is the first step to making choices.

Sommrlov--that is good info on RoundUp--note--most of the cell damage, etc...has been found due to the adjuvants (additives such as surfactants), that is mentioned in the wikipedia article a couple of times.

 

[sommrluv]

"Sommrlov--that is good info on RoundUp--note--most of the cell damage, etc...has been found due to the adjuvants (additives such as surfactants), that is mentioned in the wikipedia article a couple of times."

Thanks. That was what I meant to say, about the surfacants. It might not have come across that way.

It's interesting how much I learn about food every day, and how less prepared food comes into this house. I can affordably buy non-gmo corn products at a local store...cheaper than regular, but I don't know if they have straight up corn, which would be most helpful.

 

[seedcorn]

Quote:
Who said chemical (including glysophates) aren't harmful? They are herbicides designed to kill weeds.

Who said it is "quickly growing "superweeds"? EVERY chemical eventually gets replaced because of resistance. In the 20+ years we've use it, there are 2 weeds resistent to it.

It's simple choice......

RR resistant crops.
Use much more dangerous chemicals (suffer yield losses because of it & have carryover in soils)
or go back to lot of tillage methods which will make us more dependent on petroleum than we are.

Can't say no to all 3 as that are your choices.

Please don't stick your head in sand and say "organic" as we couldn't even feed America with less than 70 bu/acre corn. When America was "organic" average corn yields were less than 60 bushel per acre, now...150+. go back to 60 bu/acre corn, what would be the price of grain or meat?

 

[seedcorn]

Quote:
Please explain this to me. It's not accurate but yet from their view point it is??? It's either an accurate statement or it's a statement built on false facts, which makes it inaccurate.

 

[JP33]

I stopped eating Industrially raised beef and Poultry after reading Real Food-What To Eat And Why by Nina Planck, who currently runs 14 Farmer's markets in London and The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan and Everything I want To Do Is Illegal (A real eye opener about our wonderful U.S.D.A) by Joel Salatin of Polyface Farms, Inc http://www.polyfacefarms.com/default.aspx

Grass fed beef's fat is more yellow because of the beta-carotene ingested, so is the yolk of free range chickens. Free range and pastured animals also have much more omega-3 fatty acids that are passed along to us, once consumed.

I asked a guy at one of our local feed stores if they sold non-GMO feed corn and he looked at me oddly and said "What's that?" He was one of the store's managers.

The skinny I have always heard on corn is that it is 6% protein. Did you know that clover is 30% protein?

I purchased my chickens from Harry (A wonderful guy BTW as is his wife and family) whom started this thread, so that I could get healthy, fresh, free range eggs with rich yolks, higher in omega-3 fatty acids and beta-carotene.

Sure enjoying the chickens Harry, thanks again!


...JP