March 8, 1999
U.S. Groups To Seek Animal Antibiotics Ban
By Lisa Richwine
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Health, consumer and environmental groups will
ask the federal government Tuesday to stop farmers feeding animals
antibiotics that are losing their power to treat infections in people.
The U.S. consumer group Center for Science in the Public Interest is
leading the effort by 37 groups to convince the U.S. Food and Drug
Administration it must sharply curtail agricultural use of antibiotics.
Scientists think feeding the drugs to animals destined for dinner plates
makes humans vulnerable to so-called superbugs that cannot be treated.
Scientists and health-care experts are extremely concerned about strains
of salmonella and other potentially deadly bacteria that do not respond
to antibiotics. They believe the bacteria outsmart the drugs because of
their repeated use in both humans and animals.
Farmers routinely add antibiotics to livestock feed to help the animals
grow faster. CSPI said any antibiotics needed for humans should be off
limits for that purpose.
FDA officials and Congress have been debating how to stifle development
of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. In January, an advisory committee
recommended the FDA go ahead with plans to make drug companies test for
antibiotic resistance before and after they approach the agency for
approval.
Dr. Stephen Sundlof, head of the FDA's Center for Veterinary Medicine,
said Monday he did not think FDA had the authority to institute the
broad ban that CSPI advocates. But under FDA's proposals, individual
drugs could be removed from the market if the amount of resistant
bacteria they promote exceeds agency limits.
``One way or another we're going to be taking action on this,'' Sundlof
said in a telephone interview.
Makers of animal drugs said they support efforts already underway to
monitor resistant bacteria, but say the FDA's proposals to change the
drug approval process, or institute an even broader ban, are
unnecessary.
``There is not good scientific data to indicate we need to pull these
products,'' said John Keeling, a spokesman for the Animal Health
Institute, which represents animal drug makers.
The FDA is taking public comments on its proposals for animal drugs
until April and will decide whether to implement new rules sometime
after that.
--
Judith Richards, London, Ontario, Canada
<[log in to unmask]>
^^^
\ /
\ | / Today’s Research
\\ | // ...Tomorrow’s Cure
\ | /
\|/
```````
