ANIMAL HEALTH - ANTIBIOTICS AND ANTIMICROBIALS
NCBA Staff Contact:
Dr. Elizabeth Parker, Chief Veterinarian
202-347-0228
eparker@beef.org
Summary:
A top priority for all cattle producers is the health and well-being of their animals. Antibiotics and antimicrobials are an important and necessary tool in protecting animal health and well-being.
Efforts to ban the use of certain antibiotics or antimicrobials must be based on sound science, and efforts to ban antibiotic and antimicrobial use in the absence of risk assessment could be harmful to both human and animal health.
The approval and use of antibiotics to treat sick animals and to maintain animal health is a science-driven process. The Food and Drug Administration approves antibiotics to treat specific diseases or conditions at specific dosage rates, and producers are legally required to follow these precise label directions. This stringent approval process was made more stringent in 2003 when the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) finalized an additional safety measure requiring risk assessment to be applied to all new and existing antibiotics (Guidance for Industry Part 152). NCBA supports the role that FDA plays in making science-based decisions regarding the safety and efficacy of antibiotics and antimicrobials used in animal agriculture.
Background:
There has been a rising level of scrutiny about the use of antibiotics and antimicrobials in animal agriculture. Some media reports would lead readers to believe that the use of antibiotics and antimicrobials can spur the development of resistance genes in humans making it more difficult to fight human illnesses.
Several layers of protection have been put in place to ensure antibiotics are used to keep animals healthy without harm to public health. The FDA, the Department of Agriculture, along with the veterinary community, animal health companies, producer organizations and other stakeholders have put in place several layers of human health protections during the past decade to reduce any risks associated with antibiotic use in animals.
It’s important for consumers to know that by law, no meat sold in the United States is allowed to contain antibiotic residues that violate FDA standards. Antibiotics used in beef cattle must go through a rigorous scientific testing process before being approved by FDA. This process assures animals remain healthy and the food supply remains safe.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety & Inspection Service (FSIS) conducts tests to ensure beef products entering the food supply do not contain antibiotic levels that violate FDA standards. This testing protocol has been updated continuously since its inception in 1967.
NCBA Policy
NCBA policy supports the use of the Producer Guidelines for Judicious Use of Antimicrobials, which have been in place since 1987. The guidelines specifically outline the appropriate use of antibiotics:
· Avoid using antibiotics that are important in human medicine.
· Use a narrow spectrum of antimicrobials whenever possible.
· Treat the fewest number of animals possible.
· Antibiotic use should be limited to prevent or control disease and should not be used if the principle intent is to improve performance.
NCBA policy also advocates the use of antimicrobials as outlined in the Quality Assurance Guidelines for both beef and dairy cattle, as appropriate.
Key Points:
· Resistance to all antibiotics used in animal agriculture is monitored through a U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and FDA program call the National Antimicrobial Resistance Monitoring System. To date, there is no data to indicate a change in the level of resistance to antibiotics currently used in animal agriculture. We are encouraged that new antimicrobial agents for use in cattle production are moving through the Guidance for Industry Part 152 process. Antibiotics and antimicrobials are an important and necessary tool in protecting animal health and well-being.
· By law, no meat sold in the United States is allowed to contain antibiotic residues that violate FDA standards. Antibiotics used in beef cattle must go through a rigorous scientific testing process before being approved by FDA. This process assures animals remain healthy and the food supply remains safe.
· NCBA is strongly opposed to Congressional action in determining the safety and efficacy of antibiotics. This is the role of the FDA, and we ask Congress to empower the agency to do their job effectively, based on science, in an open, transparent process.
· NCBA supports actions based only on sound, peer-reviewed science and risk assessment relative to the use of antibiotics or other drugs.
· NCBA supports the judicious use of all antimicrobials and encourages proper use through beef quality assurance (BQA) programs.