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Aug. 26, 2010 > DEBATE CONTINUES OVER ANTIBIOTIC USE IN CATTLE ; by: Stephen B. Blezinger Ph.D., PAS
Part 1 - Livestock producers have fed antibiotics to promote growth to food animals for years. Over recent years, scientists have raised concerns that, in conjunction with the excessive use of antibiotics in humans, the use of sub-therapeutic levels of antibiotics in food animals could lead to serious health risks for people. Should this supposition and a consumer base buying into the theory ban the use of such drugs, a significant reduction would be seen in production efficiency, driving up the cost of meat. Some in the industry believe that the scientific evidence linking low-dose usage of antibiotics to drug-resistant illnesses in people is too inconclusive and does not justify banning their use.
We are going to look at both sides of this controversy. First from the side of the coin that sees the need to eliminate the use of antibiotics. Then we'll examine the cattle industry's view of this issue. As you will see, finding common ground will be very difficult.
From the Advocates of Banning Antibiotic Use
In most cases these folks see that producers have been feeding antibiotics to the animals we eat for decades it was found that small doses of antibiotics administered daily would make most animals gain several percent more weight than they otherwise would on a daily basis.
They believe that it is not completely clear why feeding small "sub-therapeutic" doses of antibiotics, like tetracycline, monensin, lasalocid, to cattle helps them gain weight or gain weight more efficiently. In most cases they do not see that this mode of action takes place for them most part in the rumen and that it is largely linked to causing shifts in the microbial population in the rumen resulting in higher concentrations of those microbes that produce nutritional products that animal uses for energy, protein, etc. The level of antibiotic which actually leave the digestive tract and enter the circulatory system is very small.
This group attempts to make the point that the meat industry doesn't publicize its use of antibiotics, so accurate information on the amount of antibiotics given to food animals is hard to come by. By their numbers it is estimated that 15-17 million pounds of antibiotics are used sub-therapeutically in the United States each year. This group contends that antibiotics are given to animals for therapeutic reasons, but that use isn't as controversial because few argue that sick animals should not be treated.
The anti-antibiotic crowd believes that the biggest controversy centers around taking antibiotics that are used to treat human illnesses and administering them to food animals. It is believed by many in this group that there is an increasing amount of evidence suggesting that sub-therapeutic use of antibiotics in food animals can pose a health risk to humans. If a group of animals is treated with a certain antibiotic over time, the bacteria living in those animals will become resistant to that drug. Comments by microbiologist Dr. Glenn Morris, indicate the view that the problem for humans is that if a person ingests the resistant bacteria via improperly cooked meat and becomes ill, he or she may not respond to antibiotic treatment.
Concern about a perceived growing level of drug-resistant bacteria has led to the banning of sub-therapeutic use of antibiotics in meat animals in the European Union and other parts of the world. The World Health Organization (WHO) is concerned enough about antibiotic resistance to suggest significantly curbing the use of antibiotics in food animals. In a recent report, the WHO announced its intention to "reduce the overuse and misuse of antimicrobials in food animals for the protection of human health." Specifically, the WHO recommended that prescriptions be required for all antibiotics used to treat sick food animals, and urged efforts to "terminate or rapidly phase out antimicrobials for growth promotion if they are used for human treatment." This would reduce the use of antibiotics for the purpose of increasing feed efficiency or improving gain and would potentially result in the requirement that antibiotics delivered via feed require a prescription, thus requiring the participation of veterinarians in the feed industry.
Even though it has been reported that conclusive evidence directly linking the use of drugs in food animals to an increase in drug-resistant bacteria that make people sick has not been uncovered, a number of recent studies suggesting such a link concern many scientists. The position is held that there is no evidence that antibiotic resistance is not a problem, but there is insufficient evidence as to how big a problem it is. In other words, while no significant evidence exists that proves this is a problem, a supposition DOES exist by a portion of the scientific community and therefore it is a problem.
For instance, one study published in the New England Journal of Medicine (Feb 6, 2002) researchers found links that strongly suggested that the people who developed Cipro-resistant bacteria had acquired them by eating pork that were contaminated with salmonella. The report concluded that salmonella resistant to the antibiotic flouroquine can be spread from swine to humans, and, therefore, the use of flouroquinolones in food animals should be prohibited.
Another New England Journal of Medicine study (Oct 18, 2001), found that 20 percent of ground meat obtained in supermarkets contained salmonella. Of that 20 percent that was contaminated with salmonella, 84 percent was resistant to at least one form of antibiotic.
In a specific example, some, including the FDA, believe the overuse of Baytril, an antibiotic used to treat a variety of infections in numerous species, led to an increase in treatment-resistant bacterial infections in humans. Baytril is used by poultry growers to protect chickens and turkeys from E. coli. The size of commercial chicken flocks precludes testing and treating individual birds, so when a veterinarian diagnoses one infected bird, farmers treat the whole flock by adding the drug to its drinking water. General use of Baytril, therefore, falls in the gray area between therapeutic and sub-therapeutic.
A reported problem with this is that Baytril is the sister drug to Cipro, which is used to treat and prevent anthrax as well as campylobacteriosis and salmonellosis in people. The Food and Drug Administration, doctors, and consumer groups, have all urged that Baytril be removed from the market on the grounds that its use in animals may eventually compromise the power of Cipro and similar antibiotics to fight disease in humans. Cipro and Baytril belong to a class of drugs known as fluoroquinolone, among the most powerful antibiotics currently available.
When the FDA proposed pulling Baytril use in chickens a year ago due to sharp increases in resistance to fluoroquinolones in campylobacter bacteria, one of the two manufacturers voluntarily withdrew its product.
Bayer officials continue to offer the human drug Cipro at reduced rates to the American public, saying that they are not convinced that the use of fluoroquinolones in animals can be blamed for increased resistance in people. Until more proof is found of the specific danger to humans, they will not withdraw their product from the chicken market.
This group believes the meat-production industry contends that there is not enough conclusive evidence to support measures like the FDA's proposed ban against flouroquinolones. Although none deny that the spread of antibacterial resistance is a real problem, proponents of sub-therapeutic antibiotic use in animals point out that the problem stems from overuse of all antibiotics, including therapeutic and preventative use in both animals and humans. Agricultural use may contribute to the problem, but it is impossible to determine to what extent.
Interestingly the WHO blamed the worldwide upswing in resistance to antibiotics on a combination of factors that included "overuse in many parts of the world, particularly for minor infections," and "misuse due to lack of access to appropriate treatment." The factors involved in the problem are clearly not limited to antibiotic use in animal feed.
"When someone's sick and goes to the doctor, they still expect to get a prescription," said National Chicken Council spokesman Richard Lobb. He said that people, in many cases, should look to themselves for the causes of antibiotic resistance, referring to the American practice of prescribing antibiotics for even the most minor of illnesses.
Increased use in hospitals may also contribute to the resistance problem. "Today, especially in intensive care wards, the amount of antibiotics in the environment can become high enough that people in the vicinity of patients receiving antibiotics are exposed continuously to low levels of antibiotics," microbiologist Abigail Salvers of University of Illinois commented in Scientific American. The contention here is that this low level of exposure, is one reason why highly resistant bacteria are developing in hospitals. She went on to propose that a similar phenomenon may be taking place in agriculture.
According to Alexander S. Matthews, president and CEO of the Animal Health Institute (AHI), removal of antibiotics from animals' feed and water "would lead to increased animal disease, a reduction in food safety and gain little, if anything, in the effort to control resistance." He suggests developing "prudent use principles."
Lowering or halting sub-therapeutic antibiotic use in animal production could have serious economic effects on the meat and poultry industry. According to a report released in May 2001 by USDA's Economic Research Service, discontinuing the use of antimicrobial drugs in hog production would initially decrease feed efficiency, raise food costs, reduce production and raise prices to consumers. According to the same report, U.S. hog producers saved about $63 million in feed costs in 1999 due to their use of low levels of sub-therapeutic drugs; they would have suffered an estimated loss of $45.5 million in 1999 if the drug use was banned.
Related to the pressure being brought, there is a growing movement to reduce at least the sub-therapeutic use of antibiotics in animals raised for food. Tyson Foods, Perdue Farms and Foster Farms, which collectively produce a third of the chicken Americans eat, declared their intention to greatly reduce the amount of antibiotics fed to healthy chicken. There is still no way for consumers to know whether one of these companies' chickens has been treated with antibiotics, although some corporate consumers, McDonald's, Wendy's and Popeye's among them, are reported to refuse to buy chicken that has been treated with fluoroquinolones. Increased public pressure may cause the companies who grow animals for food to collectively decide that putting extra weight on feed animals isn't worth the possibility that they are putting consumers' health at risk.
Conclusions
As mentioned, this article discussed in fairly mild form, some of the beliefs held by those who feel all antibiotic use should be eliminated in the food animal industries including cattle. As noted, many of their positions are based on very weak research and extrapolation. In the next issue we will examine the cattle industry's side of this controversy and hopefully shed some common-sense light on the topic.
Dr. Steve Blezinger is a nutritional and management consultant with an office in Sulphur Springs, TX.
July 16, 2010 > Livestock antibiotic use, human health linked: USDA
By Dani Friedland
A USDA official told a Congressional panel there is likely a link between agricultural antibiotic use and antibiotic resistance in humans.
“USDA believes that it is likely that the use of antibiotics in animal agriculture does lead to some cases of antibacterial resistance among humans and in the animals themselves, and it is important that these medically important antibiotics be used judiciously,” Dr. John Clifford, APHIS’s deputy administrator for veterinary services, told the House Committee on Energy and Commerce’s Subcommittee on Health during a hearing Wednesday.
Clifford also discussed the future of the USDA’s role, saying that the USDA wants to expand current partnerships with other federal agencies—and develop new ones.
“We need to work together to conduct research and develop new therapies that protect and preserve animal health, without increasing the risk of resistance to medically important antibiotics,” Clifford said in prepared testimony. “We must identify alternative animal health management techniques – tools and technologies, including newer and better vaccines and diagnostic tests. That portion of the partnership would extend beyond our federal partners to farmers and producers themselves,” he added. “USDA wants to partner with them to facilitate the judicious use of antibiotics in ways that are feasible to farmers and ranchers.”
July 1, 2010 > Ontario Beef News ; Abattoir Group Pushes To Simplify Rules ; A group of abattoir owners and others in the meat industry are currently in talks with the province over regulations around small abattoirs. New regulations are costing so much the number of small abattoirs is dwindling. And local producers are having difficulty finding processors. CKNX Radio 920AM Wingham story.
Mitchell Admits Province Can Do More For Abattoirs ; Agriculture Minister Carol Mitchell says her department is looking for ways to help small abattoirs. Mitchell says she's well aware of the struggles some of those operators are facing. Many of those small abattoir owners are blaming new inspection standards for their problems. Listen Carol Mitchell on Abattoirs.
June 21, 2010 > Top of the Food Chain: “Tri-Tip” Beef Cut; >When I was in grade school, the cafeteria introduced me to the "wonders" of low-budget eats, by which I mean I learned to deal with the slop that was put in front of me at lunch. There was, however, one standout meal that I could get excited about: beef tri-tip with gravy on toast. It was easily one of the best meals we were given during the week, beating out the anemic "pizza" easily. Even now, the thought of preparing tri-tip takes me back to those school days and the good times associated with them. Make some happy memories for yourself with this surprisingly flavorful cut. Top of the Food Chain, a column from Eat Me Daily's meatiest columnist, Ryan Adams. Every week he attempts to demystify the options available in your supermarket, breaking animals down piece by piece so that the next time you find yourself staring at endless Styrofoam containers, you'll be able to make an informed purchase.
May 7, 2010 > Rob Detzler has left the employment of Kerr Farms in order to develop his own sales and consulting practice. Rob will continue to work as an independent consultant with our staff and customers, assisting us in meeting our customers’ needs.
Rob can be reached at the same coordinates since joining Kerr in February of this year coming from Top Meadow Farms meat division; Rob Detzler, Office: 519 744 3363, Cell: 226 220 0185, Email
All of us here at Kerr and Top Meadow thank Rob for his dedication, contributions, and outstanding work on behalf of the Canadian and Ontario beef industry, and we look forward to many more years of association in working with Rob.
Detzler Meat Sales & Service can be found on the Kerr Farms Ontario Angus Beef Foodservice contact page.
May 1, 2010 > Two leading Ontario Hormone & Antibiotic Free Beef programs join forces as Top Meadow Farms (TMF) has merged it’s sales office with Kerr Farms Sales (KFS) ; out of the Kerr Farms Toronto office.
Working to reinforce our commitment to serving the Ontario Beef Industry; and ultimately, all of our combined “end consumers” of high quality, hormone and antibiotic-free beef; these two farms have joined forces . Effective immediately, the Kerr Farms Sales office (Phone 416 767 5726/ Fax: 416-767-4466) will be handling all TMF Certified Artisan Beef orders and shipments directly from their office and warehouse at 10 Shorncliffe Rd. Unit 4, Toronto, ON M9B 3S3.
Click here for the website of TMF Certified Artisan Beef.
Please contact Stefan, Greg or Marlis in the Toronto sales office, at 416-767-5726, or our cell phones, listed on the contact page.
Both programs will continue to be 100% verifiable, traceable, adhering to CFIA regulation -- Method of production claims - evaluation procedures” for meat production and packaging. Both companies and the supporting family farms are verifiable under the Ontario Foodland (retail) and Savour Ontario (foodservice) government programs. Both programs will continue to be founded upon our production protocols of;
RWA - Raised Without Added hormones, Antibiotics, Animal by-products and Raised With Animal welfare.
The TMF brand will continue to be Ontario Artisan produced with the same production protocols that have led to the high quality associated with our products in the past.
The KF Ontario Angus branded Beef products will again; continue to be produced from the
Kerr Farms and supporting family farms, under the production protocols established by the KF program.
Please contact any of our staff listed below for more information, we thank you for your business and look forward to working with you in the future.
Thank you
Kerr Farms Sales (Chatham) Ltd.
Stefan Oellinger Email
Greg Nolan, 416 767 5726 Email
Top Meadow Farms:
Kym & Carole Anthony
April 24, 2010 >> Green Living Show in Toronto was held on April 23 – 25 featuring sustainable living, with food samplings, wine tasting of organic/biodynamic wines, and many many green living & eco friendly exhibits. Food samplings featured local, and traditionally, sustainably produced foods. Wines featured organic & bio dynamic wines from Niagara, and across the globe, all produced using sustainable methods. Kerr product was used in the organic tomatoes in the food sampling booths and our sister brand, Top Meadow Farms beef is a feature at Organic Garage retail outlet in Oakville.
Click here for the Toronto Show details and plans for next year.
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