[Animals] Enviropig, the organic pig

[Mr.Jhorjan]

 

Link: https://www.rtve.es/noticias/20110718/enviropig-cerdo-ecologico/448488.shtml

 

Enviropig, something like Ecocerdo, is the name of a genetically modified pig to emit less polluting substances in its waste.
It has been designed by Canadian scientists from the University of Guelph.

The organic pig is of the Yorkshire breed, which are the typical little roses with little hair. Scientists have inserted into their DNA a gene from the now famous Escherichia coli bacterium to produce an enzyme in saliva called phytase.

This enzyme is responsible for breaking down molecules of grains, vegetables, which contain phosphorus. They are molecules that non-ruminant mammals cannot digest, precisely because we do not have this enzyme. In the genetically modified pig they are mixed with the food they chew.

And when the food bolus passes into the stomach, and it is in an acidic environment, the enzyme is activated and breaks down between 50 and 75% of the phosphates present in the food. Without the enzyme artificially introduced into the animal, the phosphates would be eliminated in the urine and feces, causing environmental problems.

Reduces manure
Pig waste is a huge environmental problem. The liquid part of the manure, slurry, seeps into the soil and reaches groundwater and rivers, contaminating them.

They make the algae grow disproportionately, which, on the one hand, consumes all the oxygen in that area of water, and on the other, forms a cover layer on the surface of the water and prevents light from entering. Thus, without oxygen and without light, the rest of the life that inhabits the place ends up dying.

The Ecocerdo has been in use since February 2010 in Canada. It is the only country that for the moment has given its approval to pig breeding, although only for research and not for consumption. For human consumption it is not yet approved anywhere. In Canada, more studies are required to prove its safety.

Since 2007, it has been awaiting approval for breeding or consumption by the agency that regulates drugs and food in the United States, the FDA. We will see if he makes a decision in the coming months.

 

 

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