Health - Doctors say overuse of the drugs in animal feed can lead to dangerous "superbugs"
A years-long battle to end the widespread practice of adding antibiotics to animal feed is headed back to Congress.
Prominent doctor groups are backing bills, one of which was introduced Monday, that they say are necessary to keep antibiotics working effectively for humans. The American Medical Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics and others point to a body of research indicating that overuse of antibiotics in animal feed has led to the development of hard-to-kill germs.
The result, they contend, is that doctors are running out of treatment options.
"When we use antibiotics in livestock and poultry production, we're actually helping to create superbugs," said Dr. David Wallinga, director of the Food and Health Program at the nonprofit Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy in Minnesota. "It's just not smart, and it's going to come back to bite us."
Like New York City's ban on restaurant use of trans fats passed in December, the antibiotics issue marks another chapter in changing consumer preferences, market responses and government intervention.
Industries selling and using the feed antibiotics contend that the substances help animals lead healthier lives and say risks to human health are extremely small or nonexistent. The Animal Health Institute, which represents animal-drug manufacturers, says antibiotic use for animals increased 12 percent in 2005, to 24.4 million pounds.
Previous bills to phase out animal-feed antibiotics have stalled, but proponents think they have a better chance this year in a Congress controlled by Democrats.
Bills introduced Monday and last week would phase out use of antibiotics in animal feed within two years. They also would require manufacturers to submit information on the amounts of such drugs sold.
Although antibiotics have been approved for animal applications in the United States for more than four decades, their use has risen substantially as large-scale animal feedlots, dairies and poultry operations have multiplied. Environmental and consumer critics maintain that feed antibiotics are being used to counter unnatural feeding and penning practices as well as to promote animal growth.
In mid-2003, McDonald's Corp. began asking its meat suppliers to reduce their use of antibiotics, citing public health concerns.
In the Northwest, Burgerville began getting its ground beef exclusively from Oregon Country Beef in 2004. The cooperative's members raise cattle without hormones, antibiotics or genetically modified feeds.
Kendra Kimbirauskas, an Oregon-based regional consultant for the nonprofit GRACE Factory Farm Project, said the establishment of large-scale farms in the state threatens to spread antibiotic-resistant organisms through air, water and food.
Alex Pulaski, 503-221-8516; alexpulaski@news.oregonian.comThe Oregonian
