Yesterday, in Part 1, I covered some of the impacts (none of them positive) of GE farming and Roundup (glyphosate) use on seeds and crops. Today, I am going to cover what I learned from third generation Iowa farmer Howard Vlieger about how they are affecting both animals and humans, in alarming ways.
Serious internal damage to GM-fed animals
GM-fed farm animals in the US are so damaged internally that the US must now buy natural sausage casings (made from pig intestines) from other countries. Impaired intestines cannot be used for sausage production because they rupture.
If genetically modified food damages livestock intestines, what does it to humans? Could it be tied to the huge and increasing numbers of children and adults with digestive diseases in the US? The National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse of the Department of Health and Human Services reports that 60 to 70 million people are affected.
Liver from GM-fed cattle must be condemned
The majority of liver from GM-fed cattle is unfit for human consumption due to the build-up of toxins in the liver, and consequently, the livers are condemned (i.e. declared unfit for human consumption) at the processing facility.
This is very unfortunate because beef liver is a rich source of vitamin and mineral nutrition. People in many cultures have eaten it for thousands of years, but it is now scarce in the US. The condemning of beef liver from GM-fed cattle should raise dire warning flags to those in government agencies entrusted with the health and safety of our food supply, but that is not happening. (Note: in some cases, liver from young cattle [veal] may be consumed due to the shorter duration of GM-grain consumption.)
The Institute of Responsible Technology reports GMOs are linked to organ disruption in 19 studies.
Disturbing findings from pig study
Howard showed us pictures from his pig study. The stomachs of the GM-fed pigs were 2.6 times more likely to have severe inflammation than the stomachs of the non-GM-fed pigs.
The visual difference between the stomachs of the two pig groups is striking.
Howard also noticed that the behavior of GM-fed pigs was different than its non-GM-fed counterparts. The GM-fed pigs had difficulty navigating a simple maze that was set up in order to weigh them each day during the study.
It is important to question and consider how meat from these same animals, and from foods containing GMOs and glyphosate, might affect the stomachs and GI tracts of humans (especially our youngest and most vulnerable).
GM feed reduces fertility, increases defects
GM-fed animals have significantly reduced fertility and a markedly higher rate of offspring born with birth defects. Howard noticed this as early as 1998 from family livestock farmers with whom he worked. A Danish farmer has documented a significant connection in birth defects in the pigs born to his sows that were fed feed with glyphosate residue present. Additionally, Dr. Andres Carrasco documented consistent birth defects in frog and chicken embryos when glyphosate residues of 2.03 ppm were present.
In the pig study coordinated by Howard, researchers documented that the uteri of the GM-fed female pigs were abnormally heavy, weighing 25% more than those of the non-GM-fed female pigs. This finding might be related to the conception problems that the family livestock farmers were experiencing. Further study and regulatory inquiry are warranted.
GM sugarcane workers dying of kidney disease
A mysterious form of kidney disease is killing tens of thousands of young men across Central America (known there as the “malady of the sugarcane”) and in other parts of the world. In Guatemala, one in four sugarcane field workers has died from renal failure annually since Roundup was implemented as a desiccant (ripening agent) on the sugarcane crop.
Governments are cracking down on the use of toxic pesticides which they believe is tied to Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD). In 2013, El Savador’s Legislative Assembly banned 53 agrochemicals, including Monsanto’s glyphosate and Dow’s 2-4,D.
Although Monsanto insists Roundup is safe, studies are finding glyphosate residues in our food. Despite this, the EPA recently raised permitted tolerance levels. New research raises grave concerns that this contamination enhances the damaging effects of other food-borne chemical residues and toxins in the environment to disrupt normal body functions and induce disease.
The US is the largest producer of GM crops in the world.
Prolific, grotesque tumors in GM-fed rats
In 2012, French researcher Gilles-Eric Seralini published his peer-reviewed findings in the science journal Food & Chemical Toxicity, entitled Long term toxicity of a Roundup herbicide and a Roundup-tolerant genetically modified maize.
He found that rats fed Monsanto’s GMO maize and Roundup for two years suffered terrible health effects and died earlier than the control rats on a different diet.
This paper was recently retracted. To-date, no valid reason has been given for its retraction. It appears that industry pressure compelled the editor of the journal in which it was published to retract it.
Organic livestock almost always vaccinated
Organic meat can be (and most often is) sourced from vaccinated livestock.
Presently, consumers are mostly concerned with whether or not the animal products they will consume come from animals that have been treated with antibiotics and/or hormones. It is time to add vaccines to that list of exposures about which to be concerned.
Louise Habakus and I researched this during a recent phone conversation. While it was not covered in Howard’s presentation, I asked him about it and he said it is an area he has not yet investigated.
All vaccines contain a long list of surprising and worrisome ingredients, many of which are toxic by design. I could not find one ingredient that I would want to eat.
Here’s the material safety data sheet for Boehringer Ingelheim’s Pyramid 5 veterinary vaccine, which is “indicated for vaccination of healthy cattle as an aid in the prevention of disease caused by bovine rhinotracheitis, bovine viral diarrhea types I and II, bovine parainfluenza-3, and bovine respiratory syncytial virus.”
We were shocked that these animal virus ingredients could be ending up in our food supply, not to mention an undisclosed adjuvant listed as “proprietary”. Another cattle vaccine lists 3 antibiotics in it, penicillin, streptomycin, and gentamicin, yet we are told that organic meat is antibiotic-free. Further research shows that thimerosal and aluminum, heavy metals known to be neurotoxic to humans, are used in many animal vaccines. As if the disclosed ingredients are not concerning enough, a great many ingredients in livestock vaccines are listed as “proprietary” and cannot be researched. Some may be derived from GMO sources or are otherwise known to damage the human immune, neurological, or digestive systems.
Start asking questions of your local butcher. It is possible to find farmers who don’t vaccinate their livestock, but it requires time and effort. I know many families who drive a distance to purchase their meat or order online.
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With assistance from Howard Vlieger, I am grateful to be armed with this knowledge so I can make proactive decisions about the food I serve my family. Collectively, we can create change by refusing to buy food from farmers who grow GE crops and use GM feed and glyphosate, and by supporting political candidates who will help return our food supply to a safer state through GMO labeling and holding government agencies accountable.
Additional resources
Seeds of Deception: Exposing Industry and Government Lies About the Safety of the Genetically Engineered Foods You’re Eating by Jeffrey Smith
The Seeds of Destruction by William Engdahl
America’s Two-Headed Pig by Leah Dunham
Genetic Roulette, The Gamble of Our Lives (DVD)
Second in a series of two articles (Part 1).
Laura Hayes is a homemaker and parent advocate in Northern California. She and her husband have three young adult children. Their middle child is permanently disabled following catastrophic brain damage from routine childhood vaccinations. To protect her family, Laura extensively researches the key drivers of health and healing. She enjoys sharing information about food, toxins, and vaccines through e-mail communication, and community events featuring guest speakers and movie screenings. Laura holds a BA in Human Biology from Stanford University and has been actively involved with Families for Early Autism Treatment since 1996.
Laura is pictured here with Howard Vlieger, during his presentation in Roseville, CA in January 2014.
Please provide your source for this comment so that I can share:
“The majority of liver from GM-fed cattle is unfit for human consumption due to the build-up of toxins in the liver, and consequently, the livers are condemned (i.e. declared unfit for human consumption) at the processing facility.”
Thank your for your work!
Hi Theresa,
Thank you for reading the article and for taking an interest in the beef liver issue! This issue was raised during the Q&A session following Howard’s presentation. A friend of mine brought up that he had heard that it was no longer safe to eat liver from GM-fed cattle, that the livers were toxic. He further stated that he had heard that it was still okay to eat calf liver, though. He asked Howard what he knew about that. Howard affirmed that what he had heard was correct. He later told me that the majority of beef liver from GM-fed cattle is condemned at the meat processing plants because it is unfit for human consumption.
It is not easy to find a source that specifically states this, as it is not exactly the kind of information that Big Ag and the meat companies want out there. It seems that it is information known to “those in the know”, i.e. farmers, large animal vets, and those who work at meat processing plants. Howard has asked a number of vets he knows, and a contact of his who is connected to the meat processing industry, if they can provide some data and/or a source for us. It may be that he will only be able to receive verbal affirmations of the situation.
Having said that, I was able to locate 2 links I think you will find of interest. The first is a link to the Merck Veterinary Manual which talks about the fact that liver abscesses are most common in feedlot cattle:
http://www.merckmanuals.com/vet/digestive_system/hepatic_disease_in_large_animals/liver_abscesses_in_cattle.html
Here are a few pertinent quotes from this article:
“Liver abscesses are seen in all ages and breeds of cattle wherever cattle are raised. They are most common in feedlot and dairy cattle fed rations that predispose to rumenitis…Affected livers are condemned at slaughter…”
“Rumenitis is usually the result of rapid intraruminal fermentation of dietary carbohydrate with subsequent production of lactic acid and increased acidity of the ruminal fluid. Rations with high levels of carbohydrate are the principal cause in both dairy and feedlot cattle, but the texture of the feed and method of feeding can be modifying factors. The incidence of rumenitis in feedlot cattle is significantly higher when they are transferred directly from a roughage ration to a finishing ration, and when there is poor feed bunk management.”
“Liver condemnation rates as high as 40% were recorded in a large survey of cattle slaughtered in the USA.”
The other link I think you will find of interest is from Blue Bird Labels Cattle, an FDA website:
http://www.fda.gov/AnimalVeterinary/Products/AnimalFoodFeeds/MedicatedFeed/BlueBirdLabels/ucm072534.htm
This link provides the extensive list of 163 FDA-approved drugs for cattle (look at all of those antibiotics being used for the animals that become the meat we eat and the milk we drink…astounding!). The first 61 drugs listed are specifically for feedlot cattle. Note that a number of them are specifically for liver abscesses. It appears that liver abscesses are a big concern for those who are raising cattle on feedlots, which translates to cattle being fed GM-feed.
I hope these links prove helpful. If this disturbing information didn’t threaten profits so greatly, I am sure the information would be easier for consumers to access. As it is, it appears that you have to know someone in the know to discover the truth about what is happening on feedlots and at the meat processing plants. Should I receive any more information from Howard, I will most certainly post it.
Hi FP Readers,
Everyday, there are more and more excellent articles about the myriad of dangers and destruction resulting from the use of glyphosate. Here are 3 from just today, 3-4-14:
http://www.examiner.com/article/connect-the-dots-2?CID=examiner_alerts_article (by Nancy Swanson of The Seattle Examiner…a great article regarding “Connecting the Dots” between glyphosate and many of today’s health and wellness issues worldwide)
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jeffrey-smith/avoid-eating-genetically-_b_4784390.html (part of a series of articles by Jeffrey Smith, Consumer Advocate and Author of “Seeds of Deception”)
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2014/03/04/monarch-butterfly.aspx?e_cid=20140304Z1_US-CA_DNL_art_1&utm_source=dnl&utm_medium=email&utm_content=art1&utm_campaign=20140304Z1_US-CA&et_cid=DM41580&et_rid=445500877
(by Dr. Mercola…it’s not just the bees being destroyed, it’s butterflies, too)
Do your neighbors know that the big bottle of Round Up they just bought at Costco contains glyphosate and is dangerous for them, their children and pets, their neighbors, your local water supply, bees, butterflies, and more? My good friend just educated her neighbor when she saw that her neighbor was out spraying Round Up, and now there is one more informed person out there choosing not to spray toxic Round Up. Maybe you’ll have a similar opportunity yourself today!
In the words of Maya Angelou: “When we know better, we do better.”
Keep sharing what you’re learning with others 🙂