Are Pill-Popping Turkeys A Danger?
Many experts are concerned that too much medicine is being given to farmed animals, which could result in residual antibiotics in meat consumed by humans and the development of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. A 2001 study estimated that about 24.6 million pounds of antimicrobials are used in farmed animals each year for non-therapeutic purposes.
In a study published in Environmental Health Perspectives, a John Hopkins team tested chicken products from two conventional producers and three antibiotic-free producers — 198 packages in 2004 and 210 in 2006 — and found no significant change in resistance rates. However, they did find that the Campylobacter from the two conventional producers were significantly more likely to be resistant than those from the antibiotic-free producers. The findings of this study suggest that resistant strains of bacteria may continue to contaminate poultry even after the drug is no longer used.
In 2001, the Union of Concerned Scientists estimated that each year 3 million pounds of antimicrobials are used in human medicine and 24.6 million pounds are used in farmed animals for non-therapeutic purposes, including 10.5 million pounds in poultry, 10.3 million pounds in pigs, and 3.7 million pounds in cows. In poultry, use had increased from 2 million pounds in the 1980s to 10.5 million pounds in 2001, and only 40% of that increase could be attributed to growth in the poultry industry.
An earlier study by the Animal Health Institute came up with a somewhat lower figure for agricultural use: 17.8 million pounds for therapeutic and non-therapeutic uses in all animals, not just poultry, pigs, and cows.