Those who uses our veterinary service at Biorecovery – will probably remember that we almost NEVER recommend corn as a part of your pet’s home-cooked diet.

There is a reason for this omission.

Corn is a very commonly used crop and it infiltrates into many parts of our lives. Corn is eaten on its own, it is fed to agricultural animals as feed and these animals later become food for humans. Fuel is made from processing this plant. Derivatives of corn are found in sugar, glucose, dextrose – which can be eaten by humans or even included into medical products such intravenous fluids that contain glucose. Such derivatives may be found in medicines too like aspirin and even cough syrup.

Corn (or Maize) is heavily farmed because it has become such an integral part of our lives. We depend on it. Agricultural animals depend on it. Our pets are fed corn too. This crop is so important that by 2016, 94 million acres of field corn have been planted in the USA.

To help you put in to perspective – 94 million acres = roughly 71,212,000 American football fields.

Image from Google Images

This should tell you how reliant we are on CORN. In the USA – approximately 92% of these field corn crops are genetically modified (GM). To recap briefly – crops that are planted with genetically modified seeds – are made to be very compatible with the use of Roundup® herbicide spray. That means, these crops are resistant to the herbicidal effects of Roundup®. The crop itself will not die as a result of being sprayed with Roundup®, but the surrounding weeds should.

Information sourced from Institute for Responsible Technology

Such a resilient character of these GM-corn should be a good thing. Unfortunately, GM plants such as corn have residual chemical from Roundup® – the chemical primarily being Glyphosate – have been found to be present in very high concentrations in animals. Glyphosate has as a result been anecdotally linked to increase incidence of diseases in humans and animals – signs including gastrointestinal upset, skin problem, lack of appetite etc etc. Glyphosate has been classified as a 2A potential carcinogen (that means, it has the chance of causing cancer) in humans.

The Institute of Responsible Technology (IRT) has provided a List of Products that contain or made directly from corn. The list is naturally by no means complete. However, it brings into clear view – just how reliant we are on corn and how many products you wouldn’t even THINK of – contains its derivatives. If corn is heavily genetically modified, then so will its parts that make these products.

A brief list (not every single item is 100% of the time made with corn or derivatives):

• Baking powder
• Bleached flour
• Confectioner’s sugar
• Dextrose (also in IV fluids)
• Distilled white vinegar
• Food starch (eg. corn starch)
• Glucosamine
• Golden syrup
• High fructorse corn syrup
• Honey
• Malt, Malt extract
• MSG
• Polenta
• Salt (iodized salt)
• Splenda®
• Vanilla, pure or extract
• Xanthum gum (seen in many animal treats)
• Yeast

So, putting two and two together:

(a) majority of corn grown in the USA (92%) are genetically modified

(b) GM-corn are sprayed with the herbicide Roundup® – which contains Glyphosate – a potential carcinogen in humans

(c) Glyphosate is classified 2A Potential Carcinogen in humans.

(d) you, your family and your pet may be ingesting various forms and various concentrations of corn which contains Glyphosate – which is a potential carcinogen.

(e) the less of the supposed harmful chemical ingested – likely the less affected you become.

So what do you think? You do the math.