is there anything wrong with corn and/or soy?

[KSH1]

Why am I seeing lack of these ingredients as a feature to be touted on some feeds? Thanks!

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Because for some reason people have come to believe they are unhealthy. Marketing follows the buyers whim. Everyone is afraid of gmo's as well.

 

[crazy4ChickensNducks]

I had a person ask me if they are fed corn at all because round up is used in corn and can cause cancer

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Round up is used in nearly all crops grown in the ground. It's a misconception that only corn and soy field are treated. Most all crop land is treated the same. Whether for corn or potatoes, or green beans.

 

[Folly's place]

It's about fantasy information; corn and soybeans are just fine! It would be wonderful if every food item was 'grown organically' but it's not happening, at least not yet. To be snide here, anyone who smokes cigarettes has a lot more to worry about than 'organic' or 'GMO's'. Very snide...
Mary

 

[KSH1]

That's what I thought Wasn't sure if I was missing something chicken-specific. Thanks!

 

[feedman77]

Plus sometimes other by products can be obtained cheaper than corn and beanmeal and have the same nutritional make up that corn and soybean meal do.

 

[Fishkeeper]

GMO corn is not great, not because it's GMO, but because its engineered pesticide resistance means that it's very likely had a lot of pesticides applied to it. More than corn not engineered to be resistant. It's not the corn itself that's the issue, it's the person growing it.
Soy, I think there's been some concern by some people about hormone changes. Something about chickens on soy laying sooner than chickens not on soy.
Won't hurt to avoid soy if you're worried, but as far as corn goes, I wouldn't be too worried. Might suggest trying to avoid the GMO stuff, though- again, because of pesticides. I'm all for GMOs, just not for irresponsible pesticide usage.

 

[Gargoyle]

GMO corn is not great, not because it's GMO, but because its engineered pesticide resistance means that it's very likely had a lot of pesticides applied to it.

Not necessarily. GMO corn is often engineered not to be pesticide resistant, but rather to be pest resistant, so that less, not more, pesticides are required.

One example: Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) is a naturally occurring bacterium in the soil that produces proteins specifically active against certain insects. Some crops such as corn, cotton, and soybeans have been genetically engineered to express the Bt genes that act as insecticides. Those crops require less pesticides, because they use that natural bacterium to resist pests like the European corn borer, corn earworm, and the southwestern corn borer. Since Bt is naturally very commonly present in soil, it is non toxic to chickens and people.

Note also that a lot of pesticides are used with organic crops, there are long lists of "permitted" pesticides for organics. There is a huge amount of misunderstanding about GMO's and organics.

 

[Fishkeeper]

Oh, yeah, those are the really good uses of GMOs. There's also that rice, "golden rice" I think, that has more vitamins in it, there's the rice that's been made to be flood-resistant, and probably a bunch of others. I think there are GMO flowers now that are just made to be prettier.
Most of the issue re. pesticides and corn is with the types of corn that are engineered to be, specifically, resistant to weedkillers. It's not just corn, either, but that's one of the big ones.
And, yes, "organic" means very little in this context. I just saw an advert on TV for a weed poison that's "organic friendly". One that painted dandelions as villains, no less, because clearly what the planet needs is people continuing to pour plant-killing chemicals into their lawns in order to have as little biodiversity as possible. /s