Livestock Performance: Feeding Biotech Crops

Abstract

To date, genetically enhanced plants in the marketplace that are used as feeds for livestock are based on producing insecticidal compounds or developing herbicide tolerance. Corn grain, whole plant green chop corn, corn silage, corn residue, soybeans, and soybean meal from the current genetically enhanced plants have been fed to chickens, sheep, beef cattle, and dairy cows and compared with feeds produced from isolines of nongenetically enhanced plants. Results from 23 research trials indicate that genetically enhanced corn and soybeans that are currently available in the marketplace are substantially equivalent in composition, are similar in digestibility, and have a similar feeding value for livestock.