Cyanide-Producing GM Grass Linked To Texas Cattle Deaths.

[Eddie]

Tifton is not a "GM" product; it's a conventional hybrid between a South African strain of Bermudagrass and and one from the Tifton agricultural experiment station in Tifton, Georgia.

Roundup is not used on Bermudagrass pastures so I doubt there will ever be a "GM" Bermudagrass.

Wilting, drought, extreme heat, bruising or trampling can lead to contact between cyanogenic compounds and hydrolytic enzymes in plants, resulting in inadvertent cyanide production. The cyanide production in this instance is probably a side effect of wilting due to extreme drought, which Texas has been suffering for several years. A number of grasses will do this, as will wild cherry (Prunus serotina) and other plants.