MEDISCOPE | ISSUE 2 | 02 DECEMBER 2020

ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE IN FARMING -
ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE
DOES AGRICULTURE NEED TO CHANGE?
Antibiotic usage in agriculture is increasing rapidly.
This is partly due to the increased consumption and
demand of growing populations and a relative
increase in wealth from economic development.
However, not only has the agricultural industry been
a huge contributor to greenhouse gas emissions and
water pollution, the threat of antibiotic resistance
has been rising steadily for years. These
development factors will continue to accelerate us
to a widespread crisis unless the misuse of
antibiotics is slowed. Evidence suggests that the
number of antimicrobial drugs used in food
production is the same and in someplace higher
than for human use. In the US more than 70% of
antibiotics that are medically valuable to humans
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are used in meat production.
Throughout history, antibiotic use has been
revolutionary in farming and has been essential for
treating infections in animals and providing safe
food to eat, however, currently in some locations
inappropriate use of antimicrobial drugs is an
increasing problem. Usage of these drugs is
particularly prevalent in intensive farms where
animals are kept in squalid conditions and confined
spaces. The poor and unsanitary condition of animal
living space increases the change of infections and
sometimes dangerous disease to spread; as a result
these farmed animals are often given a large
amount of antibiotics to prevent infection and to
promote growth. This misuse of antibiotics is largely
been shown to lead to antibiotic resistance. In a
report described by the NHS it is stated that 72% of
the 139 academic papers used in a literature review
found evidence to link antibiotic usage in agriculture
to an increase in antibiotic resistance and only 5%
argued that there was no link at all. This has been
said to “provide enough justification for policy
makers to aim to reduce the global use of antibiotics
1
in food production”.
A large risk is posed when drug resistant strains are
passed on through direct contact between humans
and animals or from human preparation of meat.
There is also concern that pollution from these
farms and from antimicrobial drug manufacturing
companies can further spread resistant microbes
into the environment/water sources. Many last
resort antibiotics that treat human conditions are
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By Oscar Houghton-Boyle 12S
widely used in meat production and no other
replacements currently known. This unsustainable
approach to tackle the problem of food production
is likely to lead to the emergence of dangerous
resistant strains of microbes. The report described
by the NHS suggests three recommendations on
how we could tackle the problem, however there is
no current agreed solution and stopping the use of
antibiotic usage in meat production all together will
have a significant detrimental effect on the ability to
produce food for many.
With this in mind the first of the recommendations
suggest the idea of creating a global target to
reduce antibiotic use in food production to an
agreed level in livestock and fish, along with
restrictions on the use of antibiotics in these
animals that are important for humans. Secondly it
would be important to implement a rapid
development of minimum standards to reduce
antimicrobial manufacturing and agriculture waste
being released directly/unprocessed into the
environment. And finally, improved surveillance to
monitor to problems of antibiotic resistance and
these suggestions in order to maintain progress and
to ensure global targets have been met is essential.
This increasingly important role often falls on policy
makers within government bodies and particularly
vets who work within policy making positions who
maintain animal standards and safety for humans in
agriculture. As many countries' populations and
economic development have boomed it has become
increasingly obvious that we need to ensure the
health of ourselves, the welfare of animals and
particularly the protection of the environment. In
order to reduce the risk posed by antibiotic misuse
current methods of agriculture need to change.
Change like many problems we face today will
require collaboration and further research into the
rise antibiotic resistance but hopefully one day this
problem will no longer pose a threat to human or
animal health.