Ranchers Question FDA's Decision Regarding Antibiotics
The Food and Drug Administration is hoping to ease growing consumer concerns regarding antibiotics use in livestock when they recently proposed limitations that will eventually phase out nearly 200 animal health drugs . I’m Susan Allen this is Open Range more after the break.In three years The Food and Drug Administration hopes to have phased out antibiotics used for growth promotion by livestock producers and while this should help the beef industry by increasing consumer confidence in meat products it also leaves ranchers with a host of questions about treating sick animals.The change in the drug rules means many of the drugs that currently can be purchased at a feed store or livestock internet venue would now require a prescription from a veterinarian. At first glance it seems like the FDA’s objective of monitoring antibiotic use through vets is a good approach but they haven’t taken into an account not only the remote location of many ranchers but the lack of large animal vets in rural America a crisis we’ve covered on Open Range. Many US ranchers will have a difficult time not only treating sick animals but in preventive care as well simply by not having access to a vet. The current FDA plan calls for relabeling antibiotics and removing labeling as a valid use for antibiotics that are fed to cattle. There is also concern among the ranching community that producers could be inundated with more paper work and extra expenses to meet the new guidelines thus there are a growing contingent of livestock industry experts expect this move could by the FDA could impact a producers productivity and bottom line
