Farm Groups Respond to Executive Order on Antibiotic Resistance

President Barack Obama signed an executive order announced Thursday calling for a five year plan to track highly resistant bacterial infections.  The executive order came as a response to bacteria that is resistant to antibiotic treatment, a problem that’s been noted to kill 23,000 people each year. In the executive order, Obama stated “The Food and Drug Administration, in coordination with USDA, shall continue taking steps to eliminate the use of medically important classes of antibiotics for growth promotion purposes in food-producing animals.” American Farm Bureau Federation President Bob Stallman released a statement saying. “Just as parents do not give antibiotics to a child, except when necessary and prescribed by a doctor, farmers don’t rush to treat animals with antibiotics.” Stallman encouraged those developing a strategy on this issue to protect the nation’s people and farms to talk with farmers and ranchers during the process. Stallman added that “healthy animals mean healthful meat, milk and eggs.”

National Pork Producers Council President Howard Hill said the White House acknowledged something that the NPPC has been saying for years: “More epidemiological research is needed to understand the key drivers of increased antibiotic resistance.” He said America’s pork producers who abide by strict antimicrobial stewardship programs are committed to protecting public health and producing a safe food. Hill said “NPPC is pleased that the administration agrees that more research is needed and looks forward to working further with FDA and USDA on determining the most informed and appropriate solutions for combating antibiotic resistant bacteria.”?