Pellets Announcement: Oxbow contains GMO

[GuineaPigster]

Hi all!
After seeing oxbow organics, I called the company to see if the essentials contained GMOs, since the organic doesn't.
Turns out it contains GMO soy.
IDK what to do?
Does KMS have GMO?

 

[Guineapigpro]

What's GMO? What is harmful about it? I've never heard of that.

 

[GuineaPigster]

Of GMO being harmful, or GMO in general?

 

[Guineapigpro]

Both, I think.. I have no idea what GMO is!

 

[MommaOfFour]

Both, I think.. I have no idea what GMO is!

GMO stands for Genetically Modified Organism - basically meaning that the genome of the species you're talking about (in this case soy) was modified. usually resistance genes, against (bacterial/fungal) disease and pesticides used on the field to prevent weeds from growing and taking up space/nutrients the crop would need, are inserted in the original genome. pretty much making sure the crop grows better/healthier/stronger/faster and is not affected negatively if pesticides are used to get rid of weeds.

don't mean to start a debate at all since there is so much to it but from a scientific point of view and personally I don't understand the hype and uproar this causes, especially people arguing they "dont want to eat food that contains genes"..... really? good luck with that lol. now I DO support food labeling though. we might not all agree whether or not we want to eat GMO foods BUT we need to all have the opportunity to choose for ourselves which is only possible by strict rules/regulations on food labeling.

 

[Tensonstar]

i extremely dont recommend gmo soy and corn out of all the ingredients, only organic soy is good for you now. i dont give any to all 9 of my pets. The thing about gmo is that they contain less nutrients then organic. ive seen some thing comparing if squirrels chooses the gmo or organic. they ate the organic. Gmo is also bad because Monsanto is becoming a monopoly,any farm found with there plants even if the wind took it there are sued or worse. So i dont support the company so i dont support gmos. plus organics make me feel good, so i should make your pets too. i only buy organic food or my pigs

 

[GuineaPigster]

i extremely dont recommend gmo soy and corn out of all the ingredients, only organic soy is good for you now. i dont give any to all 9 of my pets. The thing about gmo is that they contain less nutrients then organic. ive seen some thing comparing if squirrels chooses the gmo or organic. they ate the organic. Gmo is also bad because Monsanto is becoming a monopoly,any farm found with there plants even if the wind took it there are sued or worse. So i dont support the company so i dont support gmos. plus organics make me feel good, so i should make your pets too. i only buy organic food or my pigs

Thanks for your answer Tensostar! Same with me!
What brand do you give your guys?

 

[aspecht]

GMO stands for Genetically Modified Organism - basically meaning that the genome of the species you're talking about (in this case soy) was modified. usually resistance genes, against (bacterial/fungal) disease and pesticides used on the field to prevent weeds from growing and taking up space/nutrients the crop would need, are inserted in the original genome. pretty much making sure the crop grows better/healthier/stronger/faster and is not affected negatively if pesticides are used to get rid of weeds.

don't mean to start a debate at all since there is so much to it but from a scientific point of view and personally I don't understand the hype and uproar this causes, especially people arguing they "dont want to eat food that contains genes"..... really? good luck with that lol. now I DO support food labeling though. we might not all agree whether or not we want to eat GMO foods BUT we need to all have the opportunity to choose for ourselves which is only possible by strict rules/regulations on food labeling.

That always makes me laugh as well. Everything that is living or was living (this includes plants) contains genes. Plain and simple. GMO's are not as bad as everyone seems to think, but everyone does have a right to choose.

 

[Traysea]

The thing about GMO's is, from the little I read, they splice in pesticides into the DNA of the plant. So instead of being able to wash off topical pesticides, you are ingesting minute amounts of weed and bug killer per fruit or veggie. In addition to the amounts you are now ingesting directly per plant, you are also ingesting the amounts that all the animals eating GMO plants are eating. So if say a cow or chicken is eating 100 plants and you eat that cow or chicken etc... you are taking in even more of an accumulation of pesticides. If weed killer and pesticides kill insects and weeds, and in larger quantities will kill larger animals, why would anyone think that wouldn't damage us? Would you drink a bottle of round up?

I have read that something like 1 in 3 people will have cancer in their lifetime. Pesticides are known carcinogens. (as well as many other factors like wifi, plastic bottles leaching toxins into our food and drinks, nitrates, BBQ, smoked meats/ cold cuts, toxic chemicals, manufacturing by-products and industrial waste. toxins released into our atmosphere which then get dropped back into our water supply when it rains etc.) We really are killing ourselves :O(

With that said, I DO eat GMO foods because I was told that while it is better to eat organic, it is still better to eat GMO foods than NOT to eat them at all. So better to eat a GMO pepper than not to eat a pepper at all. I have a really hard time finding enough organic foods, my local super market doesn't offer much of a selection of organics. If they do I always get the organic version but sadly it's not easy for me to get organics.

 

[pinky]

I don't feed Oxbow pellets but I have no doubt there's a lot of stuff in all brands that are questionable but are needed to make the pellets. I'm sure we could question most things they eat or live in including coroplast and water bottles being a plastic product or containing plastic parts, what's in the water they drink, what's in the soil the hay grew in, source of fresh vegetables and types fed, etc. I switched to KM a couple of years ago. Before that, I feed Oxbow and one of my guinea pigs lived to 9.5 years. Most of my guinea pigs have had very long lives so I think the key is offering a well balanced diet, keeping their cages clean and seeking vet care when they're sick.

 

[Traysea]

Very true.

Maybe it takes a long time for living bodies to accumulate enough environmental toxins to cause problems? My chinchillas ALL (10 of them) lived to be well over 10 years old my oldest being 14 and my current one is already 13.5 almost 14. I used plastic bottles their whole lives, kept them on shavings, fed mazuri their entire lives. I totally agree that sanitary environments is important to longevity. I also feel that limited stress is key too.

Although, maybe their short lifespans makes up for the amount of pesticides we feed. Maybe it takes 30-50 years for them to get affected like people do. Although there is a huge rise in the amount of animals getting cancers though. I recently started with glass bottles for my pets mostly because I think it stays colder and tastes better to drink out of a glass cup but the bottles constantly leaked. I only give them filtered water :O)

 

[GuineaPigster]

I'm going to call KMS and see if theirs contains GMO.
Everyone is entitled to their opinion, and my opinion is that I'd prefer a non-GMO food.

 

[MrWhistles]

Oxbow seems to present problems with calcium deposits for many guinea pigs. I never used Oxbow, I order bulk amounts of KMS. But judging by how many people have issues with Oxbow, I wouldn't use it at all.

So GMO or not, I really don't care for their pellets.

 

[Piggy_]

The thing about GMO's is, from the little I read, they splice in pesticides into the DNA of the plant. So instead of being able to wash off topical pesticides, you are ingesting minute amounts of weed and bug killer per fruit or veggie. In addition to the amounts you are now ingesting directly per plant, you are also ingesting the amounts that all the animals eating GMO plants are eating. So if say a cow or chicken is eating 100 plants and you eat that cow or chicken etc... you are taking in even more of an accumulation of pesticides. If weed killer and pesticides kill insects and weeds, and in larger quantities will kill larger animals, why would anyone think that wouldn't damage us? Would you drink a bottle of round up?

I have read that something like 1 in 3 people will have cancer in their lifetime. Pesticides are known carcinogens. (as well as many other factors like wifi, plastic bottles leaching toxins into our food and drinks, nitrates, BBQ, smoked meats/ cold cuts, toxic chemicals, manufacturing by-products and industrial waste. toxins released into our atmosphere which then get dropped back into our water supply when it rains etc.) We really are killing ourselves :O(

With that said, I DO eat GMO foods because I was told that while it is better to eat organic, it is still better to eat GMO foods than NOT to eat them at all. So better to eat a GMO pepper than not to eat a pepper at all. I have a really hard time finding enough organic foods, my local super market doesn't offer much of a selection of organics. If they do I always get the organic version but sadly it's not easy for me to get organics.

I just wanted to add that, because the plants are producing pesticides, actual spraying of the crop is cut down by quite a lot. So you're not actually ingesting the same amount of topical pestices as in non-GMO, and the environment the crop was grown in can be much better off for this reason. Also, the pesticide that most crops are engineered to produce is Bt - a toxin produced by a bacteria that is naturally dwelling in the soil (Bacillus thuringiensis). This is the pesticide that organic growers use to spray on their crops in extremely high concentrations to kill pests as well, so GMO or not, you're probably going to ingest this anyway.

I'll be sticking with Oxbow, it's the only pellet in NZ that doesn't include sunflower seeds, artificial colours, flavours, animal products (ew!) etc.. so I don't like my chances of finding an organic guinea pig pellet that is also nutritionally complete, even if I did want to find one xD But for everyone that would prefer not to purchase GMOs, you should consider going pellet-free, or making up a larger portion of your guinea pig's diet with grass from the lawn (if you have one). That way you control the pesticides/herbicides applied and can guarantee it's not GMO ^^.

 

[GuineaPigster]

Oxbow seems to present problems with calcium deposits for many guinea pigs. I never used Oxbow, I order bulk amounts of KMS. But judging by how many people have issues with Oxbow, I wouldn't use it at all.

So GMO or not, I really don't care for their pellets.

Never heard of that. I will be researching in the next few weeks.

 

[MrWhistles]

I'm going to call KMS and see if theirs contains GMO.

They have no phone number to contact them by.
However, I've sent them an email and I should get a response sometime tomorrow.

 

[GuineaPigster]

Thanks MrWhistle!!!

 

[pinky]

I just wanted to add that, because the plants are producing pesticides, actual spraying of the crop is cut down by quite a lot. So you're not actually ingesting the same amount of topical pestices as in non-GMO, and the environment the crop was grown in can be much better off for this reason. Also, the pesticide that most crops are engineered to produce is Bt - a toxin produced by a bacteria that is naturally dwelling in the soil (Bacillus thuringiensis). This is the pesticide that organic growers use to spray on their crops in extremely high concentrations to kill pests as well, so GMO or not, you're probably going to ingest this anyway.

I'll be sticking with Oxbow, it's the only pellet in NZ that doesn't include sunflower seeds, artificial colours, flavours, animal products (ew!) etc.. so I don't like my chances of finding an organic guinea pig pellet that is also nutritionally complete, even if I did want to find one xD But for everyone that would prefer not to purchase GMOs, you should consider going pellet-free, or making up a larger portion of your guinea pig's diet with grass from the lawn (if you have one). That way you control the pesticides/herbicides applied and can guarantee it's not GMO ^^.

What pesticides are they producing?

 

[Piggy_]

What pesticides are they producing?

I think I mentioned it a little further in my post, but maybe it wasn't worded clearly- they produce Bt. Look up Bt corn for more info and details from this specific example

 

[pinky]

I think I mentioned it a little further in my post, but maybe it wasn't worded clearly- they produce Bt. Look up Bt corn for more info and details from this specific example

There's a lot of info about it but it doesn't sound like it's harmful to mammals. Neem oil is used in guinea pig shampoos but it also kills parasites. Does that make shampoos that contain Neem dangerous. I think Gorgeous Guinea Shampoo contains Neem.