Thread by @gargiuvacha

⚠️ They’re Sneaking GM Animal Feed Into Bharat Using “Self-Certification” — A Backdoor Entry for GM Produce

On July 9, India did not sign the GM clause in the US trade pact.
But the pressure hasn’t stopped.
Warnings. Lobbying. Self-certification tricks.
Here’s how your food, farmers, and exports are at risk 🧵

1.🇺🇸 The US wants India to import:

• GM soybean meal
• GM DDGS (Distillers Dried Grains with Solubles)
• GM alfalfa hay

These are animal feeds made from genetically modified corn/soy/alfalfa.
Cheap. Subsidised. Highly risky.

2.🇮🇳 On 14 July, the Coalition for GM-Free India (@GMWatchIndia) issued a formal warning to Commerce Minister Shri Piyush Goyal
✉️ Subject: India should not accept GM feed imports or “self-certification” from the US
📧 [e-mail] | @dgftindia @cimgoi

3.⚠️ The letter warned:

• US does not segregate GM and non-GM produce
• “Self-certification” = no testing, no traceability
• It becomes a backdoor entry for GM products into India
• Contamination of Indian food chains with GM is inevitable if these exemptions are given
• GM alfalfa already contaminated non-GM stock in US (USDA study)

4.🥛 What does this mean for YOU?

Milk, eggs, ghee, chicken — when animals eat GM feed, you consume the effects.
Toxins, hormonal residues, antibiotic resistance — all travel up the food chain.

There is no labelling law in India. You’ll never know.

5.⚰️ Health impacts? Alarming.

Bt toxin in GM animal feed linked to:
• Decline in cow milk yield
• Liver & hormone disruption
• Animal deaths
• Long-term, unknown human effects

(Refer: SC-appointed TEC report, Andhra Pradesh veterinary studies, internal GEAC data)

And if GM animal feed does this — imagine what illegal GM food oils (cottonseed, canola, soy) are doing to Indian mothers and children.
👉🏽 Edible oil & packaged food in India is already compromised. Story for another day.

6.🧑🏽‍🌾 Impact on Indian farmers?

Disastrous.
The US gives $30–40 billion/year in subsidies to its farmers.
Flooding Indian markets with cheap GM feed =
💥 Price crash
💥 Farmer losses
💥 Dependency on imports

7.🌾 India’s exports at risk:

Trace GM presence can lead to rejections from:
• EU
• Gulf
• Japan

Sectors hit:
• Rice
• Honey
• Tea
• Spices
• Organic food

India’s GMO-free export reputation will collapse.

8.📉 Ajay Srivastava (@ajaydgft), founder of GTRI warns:

“India’s fragmented agri logistics & no segregation make cross-contamination certain.”
“One contaminated rice shipment to Europe can destroy our export credibility.”
The risk is not theoretical. It’s real. It’s here.

9.🔬 What is GM animal feed?

It’s not “enhanced”. It’s genetically altered.
Foreign genes from bacteria, viruses, even animals are inserted into plant DNA.

Eg: Bt gene from Bacillus thuringiensis makes crops secrete insecticide within themselves.
This isn’t farming. It’s a lab experiment.

10.🙏🏽 Is it vegetarian?

Technically, yes.
But with animal-origin genes inserted into plants, it violates cultural, religious, and ethical boundaries of crores of Indians.

Do you want this entering your home without your consent?

11.🐄 What happened with Bt Cotton in India?

Cows, goats, sheep died after grazing Bt cotton fields.
GEAC (India’s GM regulator under @moefcc) never tested properly.
No toxicology. No public review.
Just brushed it aside as “unverified”.

12.🧪 Independent studies showed:

• Bt-fed rats: enlarged spleens, abnormal liver
• Sheep fed Bt cotton: 6x more lead than normal
• AST marker (liver damage) ↑ 37%
• GM-fed sheep: increased liver/testicle weight and fat

(Source: Andhra Pradesh Vet Univ 2007, CSWRI 2008, Mahyco dossiers, SC TEC)

13.✉️ On 5 March 2020, another formal letter was sent by the Coalition to GEAC Chair Ravi Prasad
📧

Warning again:
India has NO GM labelling laws
NO independent testing
We are unprepared. DO NOT approve GM animal feed.

14.🚨 History lesson: BSE — Mad Cow Disease

Result of feeding cows animal blood & tissue in UK and US.
Now, US wants to push bloodmeal + GM animal feed into Bharat.

Do we want a repeat of that tragedy? Is milk contamination worth a trade deal?

15.🤬 The betrayal?

GEAC, the main regulatory body for GMOs in India, says:
“No adverse evidence”.

Why?

Because they don’t test.

👉🏽 They rely on company-submitted data from GM-promoting firms.
👉🏽 No long-term studies. No independent reviews.
👉🏽 We need full transparency, intergenerational testing, public safety review.

16.🇮🇳 Reminder: India has approved only Bt Cotton.

NO GM food crop is legally approved.
Yet GM oils—canola, soy, cottonseed—have already flooded Indian shelves.

Now animal feed is the Trojan Horse.

17.❗The fight is not over.

The US is still pushing for this in the final trade pact.
Govt is under immense pressure.
But the people must stand strong.

Farmer groups, scientists, and citizens are resisting.
We need a public mandate.

18.✊🏽 What you must demand:

• ❌ No GM animal feed imports
• ❌ No US “self-certification”
• 🧪 Independent safety testing in Indian labs
• 🧾 Full labelling & traceability
• 🚫 Stop illegal GM food produce already being sold in India
• 🛡️ Protect export sectors from GM contamination

19.🛑 Bharat must NOT become a dumping ground for America’s GM agri-waste.

This is about:
🍛 What we eat
👩‍👧‍👦 What we feed our children
🚜 What our farmers grow
📦 What the world buys from India

📢 Raise your voice. Tag @cimgoi @dgftindia @moefcc
Before it’s too late.