New Research Reveals Why Factory Farms Have Become Superbug Factories–and Why Worse is yet to Come

from Politics of the Plate
Posted by Barry on February 19, 2010

Along with their usual rations of grain and prepared feed, factory-farmed hogs and chickens in the United States also dine on a steady diet of antibiotics. The animals are given the drugs, not to prevent or cure illness, but simply because low-level doses of antibiotics stimulate them to grow faster than untreated animals. This may be good for agribusiness’s bottom lines, but an increasing body of research shows that it might be very bad for public health.

Several scientific examinations of pork and poultry operations in this country have shown that anti-microbial-resistant “superbugs” such as flesh-eating methicilin-resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA) and certain tough-to-kill strains of E. coli are showing up, not only in farm animals, but in the humans who tend them—and even in members of their families who don’t work on the farms.

Now, a group of researchers at Boston University has discovered a mechanism that causes these superbugs to develop. It could mean that the problem with antibiotic-resistant bacteria is even worse than previously imagined. Their results are reported in the current issue of the journal Molecular Cell.

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Poultry and antibiotics.

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Interesting.

No thanks, don't want it.

"Some people say giving animals antibiotics to prevent illness or promote growth is like putting antibiotics in a child's cereal" Couric said

Weird we are trying to keep all the animals healthy but making everything sicker.

CBS News previews report on antibiotics in livestock

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from Grist

Antibiotic Use Alarms Experts - CBS NEWS

Interesting 
CLICK HERE

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The Superbug in Your Supermarket

A potentially deadly new strain of anti-biotic-resistant microbes may be widespread in our food supply. From Prevention Magazine

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Twists and Turns: Tyson's "Raised Without Antibiotics" Claim

June 08 (this is a year old, but interesting!)


Last week, Tyson Foods pulled the plug on its "raised without antibiotics" marketing campaign, ending a year long struggle involving Tyson, its competitors, the FDA, the USDA, the FTC, and a district court in Baltimore. Although along the way, the struggle seemed to involve nuances of scientific classification and the wording of Tyson's claims, the proverbial final straw came with the USDA discovery that Tyson was still using antibiotics to prevent illness and death in its chicks.

The widespread use of antibiotics in animal production has long been known to contribute to the development of antibiotic resistant bacteria. The FDA has been slow to react, but has gradually restricted the use of certain antimicrobials in animal production, thus saving the effectiveness of certain drugs for treatment of human disease. The recently released Pew Commission on Industrial Farm Animal Production called for strong actions to limit antibiotic use.

And, as early as 2002, it was reported that the market leaders in the poultry industry had begun to transition from the use of antibiotics that were also used by humans, instead using drugs that were not needed for human treatment. Tyson was at the forefront of this transition.

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