With increasing concerns about antibiotic resistance and implications for human health, the movement toward reducing the use of antibiotics in livestock animals is growing steadily worldwide, and the poultry industry is leading the way. Given the importance of this topic, a roundtable discussion was held at the 2018 Annual Meeting of the International Association for Food Protection (IAFP) in Salt Lake City (for information about the IAFP 2019 roundtable, see “IAFP 2019 Roundtable: Antibiotic Reduction, Alternatives, and the Relationship to Food Pathogen Outbreaks”). What follows is a summary of that conversation.
Reducing antibiotic use could take several forms, from no antibiotics ever (NAE), considered by some to be extreme, in which livestock animals have never been fed any antibiotic during their lifetime, to responsible use, considered a more balanced approach. “Responsible use” means that producers follow established criteria to use antibiotics only when medically necessary and under veterinary oversight and third-party verification. The goal of responsible antibiotic use is targeted treatment to control and ameliorate clinical disease and not let animals suffer.
At present, producers have a choice in how to raise their animals, using production practices that they deem most important. It should be noted that there are only retail labels available for the more extreme programs, such as NAE, but no labels for either conventional or responsible antibiotic use. Caution should be urged in passing judgment on one type of production practice versus another, as that is often harmful to the overall market.
When a poultry producer changes from conventional production, wherein most animals receive medically important drugs prophylactically in the hatchery or in the feed, to a responsible-use program, the treatment rate with medically important drugs averages about 3 percent—a 97 percent reduction of medically important drug use.
To achieve a treatment rate of 3 percent, a very thoughtful biosecurity animal health plan is necessary to prevent illness. Management practices including vaccination, nutrition, hygiene, and housing are all vital to biosecurity.
IAFP 2019 Roundtable: Antibiotic Reduction, Alternatives, and the Relationship to Food Pathogen Outbreaks
In continuation of the topics discussed at the 2018 roundtable, Merck Animal Health will host “Antibiotic Reduction, Alternatives, and the Relationship to Food Pathogen Outbreaks” in Louisville, Kentucky, on July 24 from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m.
Current and new marketplace food trends and consumer demands related to anti-biotic-free and antibiotic reduction are changing the way animals are raised for food production. Food industry stakeholders (producers, retailers, foodservice, etc.) are taking steps to address antimicrobial stewardship and identify alternatives to antibiotics. The sudden reduction and/or elimination of antibiotics, without considering alternatives, can be reflected in increased animal disease that can be translated into a higher potential for a food pathogen outbreak. Some companies have taken steps and learned valuable lessons in antibiotic reduction that are worth sharing with the large audience at IAFP.
Experts at this symposium will discuss:
• How Antibiotic Alternatives Could Address Food Safety Concerns in Preharvest Stages
• Areas of Concern When Reducing and/or Eliminating the Use of Antibiotics
• Best Alternatives to Mitigate Issues That Antibiotic Reduction Could Heighten (Global Perspective)
• Food Safety Concerns Due to Antibiotic Reduction — How Have Countries That Have Pioneered in This Area Such as United Kingdom Addressed These Issues?