Critical Observer

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California has adopted the toughest limits in the nation on the use of antibiotics in healthy livestock, barring their routine use to prevent illness or promote growth. 
 
Calling the overuse of antibiotics “an urgent public health problem,” Gov. Jerry Brown announced Saturday he signed the legislation. The bill, SB 27, will curb the overuse of antibiotics in livestock, which limits the effectiveness of the medicines in both animals and people and contributes to the spread of dangerous, drug-resistant superbugs. 
 
“The science is clear that the overuse of antibiotics in livestock has contributed to the spread of antibiotic resistance and the undermining of decades of life-saving advances in medicine,” Brown said in a statement. 
 
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention calls antibiotic resistance one of the world’s most pressing health problems and estimates that 23,000 Americans die annually as a result of antibiotic-resistant infections. 
 
The agency has recommended phasing out their use in cases solely to promote growth in livestock. In low doses, some antibiotics can generate greater muscle development by boosting the efficiency of food that animals eat. 
 
Supporters of the legislation by Sen. Jerry Hill, D-San Mateo, say the antibiotics are fed to mostly healthy animals such as cows, pigs and chickens to make them grow faster and prevent disease in crowded industrial farms. 
 
Widespread use of antibiotics by humans and animals reduce their effectiveness in treating illnesses because the diseases adapt by mutating, creating superbugs. Once-treatable illnesses can become dangerous infections when antibiotics are no longer effective. 
 
“The lifesaving potential of antibiotics is quickly diminishing, and people are dying because the drugs are less effective,” Hill said in a statement. 
 
Opponents argued that the California legislation does not go far enough to restrict preventive or routine use of antimicrobial drugs. Groups such as the California Cattlemen’s Association remained neutral on the bill. 
 
Michael Hansen, a senior scientist at Consumers Union, the policy division of Consumer Reports, said many companies have voluntarily agreed to stop using antibiotics to promote growth after guidance from the Food and Drug Administration. 
 
“No state yet has been able to pass a bill that is stronger than the one in California, and the fact that California is an important ag state, that makes this an important action,” Hansen said. 
 
The antibiotics are different from the growth hormones used by many food producers that have drawn criticism and that some grocery stores and food chains have phased out. Companies including McDonald’s, Chipotle and Panera also have begun promoting their chicken as raised without antibiotics. 
 
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Brown, a Democrat, vetoed a similar version of the bill last year, urging the state Department of Food and Agriculture to work with lawmakers on the issue, but his office helped make changes to this year’s measure to strengthen protections against using antibiotics to prevent disease. 
 
The bill allows exemptions when a licensed veterinarian determines antimicrobial drugs are needed to treat a disease or infection, to control the spread of a disease, or in relation to surgery or a medical procedure, according to an analysis prepared for the Legislature. 
 
The California Veterinary Medical Association expressed concern that veterinarians might not be able to prescribe the drugs preventively to treat diseases for which there is no test available to determine which animals are carriers. 
 
The law, which takes effect in 2018, also eliminates the availability of livestock antibiotics for over-the-counter sales. 
 
From The Miami Herald

CALIFORNIA & STRICT LIMITS ON LIVESTOCK ANTIBIOTICS

California has adopted the toughest limits in the nation on the use of antibiotics in healthy livestock, barring their routine use to pre...

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Most large U.S. fast-food chains still serve meat from farm animals that have been routinely fed antibiotics, consumer groups said in a new report, which concluded that many companies have not yet laid out plans to curb the practice. 
 
Subway, Starbucks, KFC and Domino's Pizza were among the industry leaders graded "F" for their antibiotic policies in the report from consumer and health groups, titled "Chain Reaction," released on Tuesday. 
 
The groups, which did not release results to companies prior to publication, based their grades on public statements, survey responses and correspondence with individual chains. As a result, companies given failing grades were not immediately able to comment. 
 
An estimated 70 percent of antibiotics important to human health are sold for use in meat and dairy production. 
 
Concern is growing among public health experts that the overuse of such drugs, particularly those important to human medicine, are contributing to rising numbers of life-threatening human infections from antibiotic-resistant bacteria dubbed "superbugs." 
 
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that 2 million people are infected with drug resistant bacteria each year and 23,000 die. 
 
"From bacon cheeseburgers to chicken nuggets, most meat served by America's chain restaurants comes from animals raised in industrial-scale facilities, where they are routinely fed antibiotics to prevent disease that is easily spread in crowded, unsanitary, stressful conditions," said Kari Hamerschlag, a lead author of the report who is senior program manager at Friends of the Earth. 
 
Subway was cited, in particular, for failing to publicly state a policy or plan to cut antibiotic use in the meats it buys, despite repeated requests by the report's authors for clarification. 
 
Chipotle Mexican Grill and Panera Bread, were top finishers with "A" grades. These popular chains have won loyal followings for policies that include strict limits on antibiotic use. 
 
Chick-fil-A, which is making meaningful progress toward its goal of only buying chicken raised without antibiotics by 2019, got a "B" in the report. 
 
McDonald's and Dunkin' Donuts got "C" grades. McDonald's plans to only source chicken raised without antibiotics important to human medicine by 2017. Dunkin' Donuts aims to prohibit suppliers from using medically important antibiotics or antimicrobials in healthy animals, but it has not set a timeline. 
 
From the New York Daily News

ANTIBIOTICS OVER-USED IN FAST-FOOD CHAINS - STUDY

Most large U.S. fast-food chains still serve meat from farm animals that have been routinely fed antibiotics, consumer groups said in a n...

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