Veterinarians Testify on Antibiotic use in Food Animals

October 8, 2008 — 

Dr. Craig Rowles, AASV member and partner with Elite Pork in Carroll, Iowa, joined veterinarians representing the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) on September 25 to provide testimony before the House Agriculture Committee's livestock subcommittee regarding the importance of antibiotics in food animal medicine.

Dr. Rowles, testifying on behalf of the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC), stated that pork producers use antibiotics to keep their animals healthy and produce safe, nutritious and quality pork. He said that producers work with their veterinarians to determine effective antimicrobial strategies to address disease issues. Rowles described the Pork Quality Assurance Plus and the Take Care: Use Antibiotics Responsibly programs which provide guidelines on antibiotic use that help protect animal and public health and animal well-being.

Dr. Christine Hoang, assistant director of the AVMA's Scientific Activities Division, explained that significant safeguards to animal and human health have emerged as a result of veterinarians' work with livestock. She reiterated the benefits of maintaining animal health with the use of antibiotics. "Several risk assessments demonstrate a very low risk to human health from the use of antimicrobials in food animals, and more significantly, some models predict an increased human health burden if the use is withdrawn," she testified.

The NPPC testimony is available on their web site and Dr. Hoang's testimony can be found on the AVMA's food safety advocacy web site Keep Our Food Safe.