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Brussels, 12 January 1998
Antibiotic resistance : a threat to human and animal health
EURO COOP pleads for a ban of antibiotics as growth promoters in feedingstuffs
Euro Coop calls for a total ban of antibiotics as growth promoters in feedingstuffs within the European Union, with a transition period of 10 years. This is because of the potential risks to human and animal health, consumer demands and ethical concerns.
Euro Coop agrees that antibiotics are one of the most important and efficient ways of curing infections and have indeed increased human life expectancy by many years. However, it is clear that throughout the internal market certain antibiotics are not only used in a curative way but are also added to livestock feed as growth promoters.
Euro Coop is concerned about the potential risks to human and animal health which may result from the excessive use of antibiotics within human medical care and its excessive use in the fattening of livestock. Euro Coop fears that such extensive practices would lead to an increasing antibiotic resistance both in human medicine and in animal production worldwide.
Euro Coop recognises that antibiotics are valuable medicines, but they should only be added to feed for the purpose of easing or curing disease or the symptoms of disease, and not be used on a routine basis as prophylaxis or growth promoters. Therefore Euro Coop calls for a correct and restrictive use of antibiotics for the following scientifically based evidences :
- resistance to one bacterium can be transmitted to another ;
- bacterial cross resistance acquired between animal and human antibiotics has been confirmed (as with avoparcin and vancomycin or tylosin and erythromycin) ;
- resistant bacteria have spread from animals to man ;
- certain antibiotic growth promoters may encourage the colonisation of the gut by salmonella species ;
- growth promoters that are yet not used for therapy can be valuable models for future drugs and must therefore be safeguarded.
Euro Coop stresses consumers' increasing demands for more openness, transparency and accountability for foodstuffs production. The consumer cooperatives believe that the use of antibiotics as growth promoters together with intensive and industrialised production systems does not address consumer expectations on food safety.
Finally Euro Coop wishes to emphasis the need to improve animal housing by new concepts for feed and management. They should be constructed and operated in a manner that promotes the health of the animals instead of the routine use of antibiotics.
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