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Cyanide-Producing GM Grass Linked To Texas Cattle Deaths

Posted by timothy on from the now-that's-just-creepy dept.

Peristaltic writes "Scientists at the U.S. Department of Agriculture are trying to determine if an unexpected mutation in a popular GM grass, Tifton 85, is responsible for the sudden deaths of a small herd of cattle in Elgin, Texas three weeks ago. The grass has been used for grazing since 1992 without incident, however after a severe drought last year in Texas, the grass started producing cyanide in sufficient quantities to kill a small herd of cattle in Elgin, Texas. Testing has found the cyanide-producing grass in nearby fields as well." Update: 06/23 22:59 GMT by T : Reader Jon Cousins writes with a correction that means the headline above is inaccurate for including "GM." Tifton 85, he writes, is "absolutely not genetically modified. It's a conventionally bred hybrid."

10 of 305 comments (clear)

  1. Dear Mr Abel by drewsup · · Score: 5, Funny

    How dare your heard of cattle defame the good name of our company by having the nerve to DIE after eating our product. You sir, will be hearing from our attorneys.

    Sincerely,
    The Monsanto Group

    1. Re:Dear Mr Abel by LordLimecat · · Score: 5, Informative

      A) Tifton85 isnt a Monsanto product
      B) Tifton85 isnt a GM product-- its a hybrid
      C) Some plants actually do produce cyanide, and they dont have to be GM to do so.

  2. Except it isn't GM grass. by mc6809e · · Score: 5, Informative

    Tifton 85 is actually a hybrid of African Bermuda grass and Tifton 68, a different hybrid produced in Tifton, Texas.

    It's not a GM grass.

  3. BS by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    You've got to be kidding: this report needs to be retracted as it is completely wrong. Tifton 85 is a conventionally bred grass.

    It's incredibly irresponsible to print something this inflammatory and wrong. You've now aerated people all over the world with this misunderstanding, and it will continue to be flogged forever with this incorrect information.

    Further, people who hear about this won't know what the real issue is and it could cause more cow deaths.

    Fix or retract this article immediately.

    Pull the story. Get your facts straight. This farmer needs education from a local co-op extention. Any native or hybrid (NOT GM) grass can create this condition! Those that care for truth and real data go here and learn: http://www.uwex.edu/ces/forage/pubs/sorghum.htm

    1. Re:BS by rohan972 · · Score: 5, Informative

      Maybe I'm being alarmist, but to me, it's better safe than sorry - sorry being a desert planet.

      You are being alarmist and it is not better to take drastic action unnecessarily than to know what you are doing. You are not going to get a desert planet from this. They are testing to see if it's a mutation because the weather events were not the ones they would have expected to produce cyanide. Production of cyanide by grasses is known and understood, this just happened unexpectedly and in combination with poor animal husbandry.

      It's not the only pasture crop that can kill cows if you put them in hungry to fresh grass, either. Even lucerne and other legumes can kill cows by releasing gas and foam in the stomach. I hope you don't think we should kill all legumes just in case.

      --
      http://marriedmansexlife.com/
  4. Looks like crap from CBS by mynamestolen · · Score: 5, Informative

    A different report says this can happen in any type of grass. http://www.uwex.edu/ces/forage/pubs/sorghum.htm Young plants, including roots, and leaves of older plants contain a compound called dhurrin which can break down to release a substance called prussic acid or hydrogen cyanide (HCN). The recommendation is not to graze or cut for green chop until the plant is 18 to 20 inches tall.

    --
    work in progress
  5. Nice try CBS, but it's not GM by daninaustin · · Score: 5, Informative

    http://www.examiner.com/article/gmo-food-hybrid-poison-grass-that-kills-texas-cattle-not-genetically-modified

  6. yeah, except for the true part by daninaustin · · Score: 5, Informative

    It's not GM. http://www.examiner.com/article/gmo-food-hybrid-poison-grass-that-kills-texas-cattle-not-genetically-modified

    1. Re:yeah, except for the true part by khallow · · Score: 5, Informative

      just with the old hybridization-method they managed to create something that in field conditions produced enough cyanide to kill a cow.

      Cyanide poisoning is apparently a potential problem with any variety of grass, not just the hybrids.

  7. Re:Holy f*** by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    Why, cyanide production is common in lots of plants. Cattle sometimes die from eating too many cherry tree leaves. I don't understand the whole problem. Put plants under stress and they will produce more secondary metabolites for a multitude of reasons, including herbivore protection.