The Use of Antibiotics in Farm Animals

[Hoosier Hillbilly]

New Report Says FDA Allowed ‘High Risk’ Antibiotics to Be Used on Farm Animals

Bryan Walsh @bryanrwalsh

Jan. 28, 2014
Experts worry that the overuse of antibiotics on livestock is leading to resistant-strains of bacteria.

Antibiotic resistance claims 23,000 lives a year in the U.S.—and the overuse of antibiotics in livestock plays a role. Is the FDA doing all it can to protect Americans?

time.com/2825/new-report-claims-fda-allowed-high-risk-antibiotics-to-be-used-on-farm-animals/

Bacteria mutate in the environment. When antibiotics are overused, bacteria adapt, and antibiotic-resistant strains survive. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that antibiotic-resistant bacteria kill 23,000 people a year in the United States. Health officials warn that if something is not done, eventually antibiotics will not be able to treat simple infections in humans.

[Hoosier Hillbilly]

www.chipotle.com/en-us/fwi/animals/animals.aspx

Excerpt:


Pork

Many pigs are raised on factory farms and don't have a great life. They are penned in concrete and steel and given large amounts of antibiotics to fend off the diseases this type of confinement breeds. According to the Union of Concerned Scientists, American pork producers use over 10 million pounds of antibiotics per year to keep their confinement raised pigs from getting sick. That's more than an estimated three times the amount used to treat all human illness.

Between the mistreatment of the pigs and the massive amount of waste produced, these farms aren't good for anyone.

Luckily, there is a better way.

There are ranchers whose pigs are raised outside or in deeply bedded pens, are never given antibiotics and are fed a vegetarian diet. It's the way animals were raised 50 years ago before huge factory farms changed the industry. We believe pigs that are cared for in this way enjoy happier, healthier lives and produce the best pork we've ever tasted.

We call this style of ranching naturally raised, and since 2001, we have sourced 100% of our pork from producers who follow these guidelines.