Dive Brief:
- The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) and other groups filed a petition this week asking the FDA to witdraw approcal for using antibiotics in livestock to promote growth and prevent disease, according to a news release.
- The FDA's voluntary policy for antibiotics reduction has not curbed antibiotics sales in the livestock industry, the petition says.
- The groups suggest that the FDA "eliminate the riskiest uses of antibiotics that threaten human health," according to the news release.
Dive Insight:
Drug-resistant bacteria remains a major concern for legislators and public health advocates. The latest instance came up just last week, when researchers discovered that a Connecticut toddler was sick with a breed of E. coli that had the antibiotic-resistance gene mcr-1.
In an earlier report, NRDC found that as of 2013, 70% of medically important antibiotics sold in the U.S. are for livestock use. That number has been steadily increasing in recent years as manufacturers pay more attention to both yield and the safety of the herd or flock.
However, while consumers may be eating more meat and meat snacks, they are also being more particular about which brand or retailer they buy their meat from. That puts pressure on manufacturers to decide whether to join the competition in reducing or eliminating antibiotics or pursue other avenues, such as being more transparent about antibiotics use. Either way, no meat or processed foods company wants to have a recall on their hands that centers around a drug-resistant strain of otherwise fairly common food pathogens.