No evidence GM feed is harmful

THERE is no evidence that genetically modified (GM) animal feed can have a harmful effect on meat, according to a new report from the European Food Safety Authority.

The research followed a public petition to have meat, milk, and eggs labelled, if it came from animals that have been fed genetically modified feed.

The European Commission wanted to know if transgenes or their products could be incorporated into animal tissues. The study also looked at whether the DNA from GM foods could be absorbed by humans. Following a survey of literature on the matter, the EFSA concluded that the digestion process rapidly breaks recombinant DNA into small fragments, reducing the chance of them being absorbed intact into the muscle, milk, or eggs of animals. “After ingestion, a rapid degradation into short DNA or peptide fragments is observed in the gastrointestinal tract of animals and humans,” the report states.