It appears that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has launched a new volley in the global war against farms and food production.
Starting on June 11, 2023, livestock antibiotics that were once available over-the counter will require a veterinary prescription, thanks to a new federal rule from the FDA.
This includes both animals intended for food production and those that do not enter the food supply, such as dogs, cats, backyard poultry, pet rabbits, and pot-bellied pigs.The new federal rule follows the FDA’s recommendation that manufacturers of medically important antimicrobial drugs that were previously available OTC and approved for use in animals (both companion and food-producing, regardless of delivery mechanism) be brought under veterinary oversight or prescription status. In 2017, OTC antibiotics used in animal feed were moved to Veterinary Feed Directive (VFD), allowing closer veterinarian oversight of antimicrobial use in animal feeds. All OTC antibiotics placed in the drinking water were moved to prescription status at the same time. This new federal rule concerns the few antibiotics that remained available OTC in the form of injectables, intramammary preparations, and oral boluses.By the June 11 deadline, the labels of all OTC antibiotics for livestock use will be required to read: “Caution: Federal law restricts this drug to use by or on the order of a licensed veterinarian,” and the purchaser must have a veterinarian prescription to buy it.
While controls to ensure the chances for developing antibiotic-resistant strains and passing them onto humans are important, so is recognizing the fact that ranchers and herders have a vested interest in healthy animals and often have as much experience as a veterinarian in addressing the issues that require antibiotics.
This rule will make it more challenging for ranchers and farmers to obtain medications.
“It is going to be more difficult because you’re going to have to meet with a veterinarian or you’re going to have to have a telephone conversation with a veterinarian. She’s going to have to fill out paperwork and you’re going to have to get it done,” said John Pfeiffer, a rancher.In the past, Pfeiffer could get over-the-counter antibiotics for his animals whenever he wanted. Now, he worries there will be times it takes too long.”A lot of cases when calves get sick or when a cow gets sick, you’ve only got like a 12-hour window to get the antibiotic into them or you’re wasting your time,” Pfeiffer said.
The move will make antibiotics more costly and contribute to the loss of livestock.
“When animals need antibiotics, they need them and if you have to wait you’re looking at deaths that are unnecessary.” Said Craig Smith, Smith Family Farms of Louisiana owner.This new rule not only hurts the farmers, but also the livestock.
Of course, increasing the cost of meat and dairy products while reducing the carbon footprint of livestock may be a feature instead of a bug for the Biden administration.
Potentially contributing to this problem, there is a shortage of veterinarians, especially those who would be needed to write the prescriptions for these medications.
The shortage is mirrored by a growth in the number of veterinarians that Americans are much more familiar with – those who take care of the family pet. Since at least the early 2000s, more veterinarians have chosen the better pay and more reasonable work hours that go with a practice that focuses primarily or exclusively on “companion” animals. With the COVID-19 pandemic-driven spike in pet ownership, demand – and salaries – for companion animal veterinarians have increased rapidly, according to the American Veterinary Medical Association, or AVMA.The implications of this shortfall go beyond the farm. Some farmers and the AVMA warn that without enough vets, the food supply chain is vulnerable to diseases such as foot and mouth and swine flu.”Food-animal veterinarians are a front-line defense in the surveillance, prevention, treatment, and control of animal diseases,” AVMA President Dr. Lori Teller wrote in an email to NPR. “Veterinarians help to protect the health and welfare of animals that produce eggs, milk, meat, wool, and other protein and fiber products,” she says.Teller says that among veterinary school graduates, nearly half are choosing to work exclusively with companion animals, with another 8% selecting mixed practices, where they might treat a dog and cat one day and a cow the next. Fewer than 3% of recent graduates choose to work exclusively with food animals, with others deciding to pursue advanced degrees or go into specialties, such as horse care.
Some congressional representatives are now trying to rein in the FDA, but that is like closing the barn door after the regulatory horse has bolted.
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