The American Farm Bureau Federation and other members of the Coalition for Animal Health hosted an educational briefing for congressional staff on meat production, public health and the importance of antibiotics. The briefing focused on helping legislators understand how and why farmers and ranchers use antibiotics.
Presenters included Dr. Scott Hurd, a veterinarian and epidemiologist at Iowa State University; Dr. Christine Hoang with the American Veterinary Medical Association; and Dr. Rich Carnevale from the Animal Health Institute.
The risk to humans is negligible due to on-farm antibiotic use, Hurd said, citing numerous peer-reviewed scientific assessments that have failed to demonstrate any detectable risk treatment failure in humans caused by on-farm antibiotic use in animals. Failure to prevent or treat illness causes unnecessary animal suffering and death, Hurd pointed out.
Montana Farm Bureau Federation Animal Health Committee Chair Beth Blevins, DVM, explains, “On the farm, antibiotics are primarily given to animals that are sick or for the prevention of sickness. Farmers can’t afford to treat animals unnecessarily. Research conducted before the antibiotic is for sale determines how long the antibiotic is in the meat and milk. Farmers follow that information, not selling an animal for consumption until it is past the withdrawal time, which is the amount of time for the antibiotic to be out of the animal’s system as determined by careful research. Drugs are licensed for use in this country only after the methods are carefully examined and approved. After the withdrawal time, the antibiotic is gone from the animal’s system. Farmers must sign a paper at the auction yard where animals are sold stating the farmer will only sell animals that have gone through the withdrawal time if any drugs were given.”
Farmers and veterinarians are working together to manage potential hazards, with the goal of producing a safe and wholesome food supply, protecting public health and preserving antibiotics for use by future generations.
Commenting on several bacteria of concern to the Infectious Disease Society, Hurd said most, including Staphyloccous (MRSA), Streptococcus pneumoniae and drug-resistant tuberculosis, are not foodborne infections or related in any way to food-producing animals.
“Concern over resistance in bacteria being passed from food animals to people is a conjecture,” says Blevins. “No research has been done demonstrating how this happens. The demonstrable methods of encouraging antibiotic resistance is either people taking antibiotics for viral infections (viruses are not affected by antibiotics) or people taking only part of an antibiotic prescription instead of the entire course, meaning the bacteria left when the person stopped taking the antibiotics are those bacteria with the resistance to the antibiotic. Those bacteria quickly multiply and may spread the resistance they had to the other bacteria.”
“Responsible antibiotic use is often the best choice to treat sick animals, as well as to prevent animals from getting sick or suffering. Montana Farm Bureau supports science-based, peer reviewed programs that are designed and monitored by veterinarians and animal care experts,” Blevins concluded.
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