F.D.A. to Phase Out Use of Some Antibiotics in Animals Raised for Meat
Source: NY Times
The Food and Drug Administration said Wednesday that it is taking steps to phase out the use of some important antibiotics in animals raised for meat, a step that public health advocates said would help preserve the effectiveness of drugs critical to human health after decades of inaction by the agency.
Antibiotics, one of the wonder drugs of the 20th century, were initially used indiscriminately in people and animals, experts say. Farmers discovered that antibiotics helped animals grow much more rapidly and added the drugs to feed and water given to healthy animals. Broad use has led to antibiotic resistance, and some of these critical drugs no longer work in treating infections, experts say.
Under its new plan, the agency has changed the rules so that food animal producers will no longer be able to use antibiotics to make animals grow faster. And if producers need to give the drugs to a sick animal, they will have to get a prescription from a veterinarian.
The agency will ask the drugs’ manufacturers to change labels to rule out using the medicines to make animals grow. The changes are voluntary for drug companies, but F.D.A. officials said they believed the companies would comply. Companies will have three months to tell the agency whether they will change the labels, and three years to carry out the new rules.
Read more: http://mobile.nytimes.com/2013/12/12/health/fda-to-phase-out-use-of-some-antibiotics-in-animals-raised-for-meat.html
= new reply since forum marked as read
The industry routinely gives antibiotics to animals regardless of their health. Animals should only receive these medicines if they are sick. If a lot of animals are getting sick, then they should look at what aspects of their industrial farming are causing this phenomena.
There is a reason people call the I-5 feedlots in California.... Cowschwitz
This
or this
The proposed legislation I don't think goes far enough because these mega cattle factories obviously have their own in-house veterinarians. In some senses it sounds like these rules mostly affect the little producers.
Sad but true, some poor people would buy these antibiotics for themselves at the feed store.
http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/explainer/2011/04/can_i_take_my_dogs_pills.html
https://www.google.com/search?num=100&client=safari&rls=en&q=pet+meds+for+human+use
