FDA to ban antibiotic used by poultry farmers

By PHILIP BRASHER

Associated Press

WASHINGTON – The Food and Drug Administration plans to ban two antibiotics widely used by poultry farmers because of a risk that humans could become infected with germs that resist treatment.

It would be the first time the government has pulled any drug to combat infections that have grown resistant to antibiotics.

Abbott Laboratories of North Chicago, Ill., maker of one of the drugs, will withdraw its antibiotic immediately, but Bayer Corp. Animal Division, of Shawnee Mission, Kan., which dominates the market, may contest the ban.

Bayer’s drug, enrofloxacin, causes the development of antibiotic-resistant campylobacter bacteria, a human pathogen, and the resistance is then transferred to humans, FDA said in a statement announcing its action. “Resistant campylobacter infections are a human health hazard,” the agency said.

Public health organizations, including the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization, have advocated such a ban for years. Officials warn that resistance to antibiotics is threatening to render penicillin and other infection-fighting drugs ineffective.

But agriculture and pharmaceutical interests have successfully held them off until now.

“We feel that this was an appropriate and a necessary step,” said Richard Wood, president of Food Animal Concerns Trust, an advocacy group that had been pushing for the ban.

The antibiotics, known as fluoroquinolones, have been available for human use since 1986 and often are prescribed to treat serious gastrointestinal illness, including from the common campylobacter bacteria. The drugs were approved for chickens, turkeys and cattle in the mid-1990s. Since, the incidence of resistance to fluoroquinolones in humans has increased dramatically.

“We want to take a look at the basis of the (FDA’s) decision,” Bayer’s senior vice president, John Payne, told The Washington Post. “We have always said if we thought our product is causing harm, we would do the right thing.”

After years of testing, the FDA concluded this year that the health of at least 5,000 Americans is affected each year by the use of these drugs in chickens.

These people eat animals that are carrying resistant campylobacter bacteria because the animals were treated with fluoroquinolones. If the bacteria make people sick and they seek treatment, fluoroquinolones will be far less effective than normal. This could be life-threatening to the elderly, to children and to people with depressed immune systems.

Resistance develops when antibiotics are overused, both by doctors treating people and by farmers treating animals. An estimated 40 percent of the nation’s antibiotic use is in livestock.

The FDA selected fluoroquinolones to study because they are so commonly used and because the agency was able to collect the necessary data to directly link the drugs’ use in chickens with a specific problem in people, the Post said.

The drugs, Baytril from Bayer and Sara Flox from Abbott, are used to treat respiratory problems in chickens and turkeys. Because the birds are raised in large flocks, it is impossible to treat the birds individually, so the drugs are used in drinking water for the entire flocks. About 1.5 percent of chickens are treated with the antibiotics, according to industry sources.

“It’s used only under prescription of a veterinarian to treat really serious illnesses that could have a very high flock mortality of 60 percent or more,” said Richard Lobb, spokesman for the National Chicken Council. “They’re not used very often and when they are used they are used because they are necessary.”

The FDA is reviewing the use of fluoroquinolones in cattle as part of a comprehensive examination of all agricultural antibiotic use.

Copyright ©2000 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

Olivia Vanni / The Herald 
The Mukilteo Lighthouse. Built in 1906, it’s one of the most iconic landmarks in Snohomish County.
The Mukilteo Lighthouse. Built in 1906, it’s one of the most iconic landmarks in Snohomish County. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Mukilteo mayor vetoes council-approved sales tax

The tax would have helped pay for transportation infrastructure, but was also set to give Mukilteo the highest sales tax rate in the state.

South County Fire plans push-in ceremony for newest fire engine

Anybody who attends will have the opportunity to help push the engine into the station.

Marysville Mayor Jon Nehring gives the state of the city address at the Marysville Civic Center on Wednesday, Jan. 31, 2024, in Marysville, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Marysville council approves interim middle housing law

The council passed the regulations to prevent a state model code from taking effect by default. It expects to approve final rules by October.

x
State audit takes issue with Edmonds COVID grant monitoring

The audit report covered 2023 and is the third since 2020 that found similar issues with COVID-19 recovery grant documentation.

Bothell
Bothell man pleads guilty to sexual abuse of Marysville middle schoolers

The man allegedly sexually assaulted three students in exchange for vapes and edibles in 2022. His sentencing is set for Aug. 29.

Larsen talks proposed Medicaid cuts during Compass Health stop in Everett

Compass Health plans to open its new behavioral health center in August. Nearly all of the nonprofit’s patients rely on Medicaid.

‘Voter friendly’ election ballots set to go out for Snohomish County voters

Materials will include some changes to make the process easier to vote in Aug. 5 primary.

Community members gather for the dedication of the Oso Landslide Memorial following the ten-year remembrance of the slide on Friday, March 22, 2024, at the Oso Landslide Memorial in Oso, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
The Daily Herald garners 6 awards from regional journalism competition

The awards recognize the best in journalism from media outlets across Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Washington.

Kathy Johnson walks over a tree that has been unsuccessfully chainsawed along a CERCLA road n the Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest on Thursday, July 10, 2025 in Granite Falls, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
How Roadless Rule repeal could affect forests like Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie

The Trump administration plans to roll back a 2001 rule protecting over 58 million acres of national forest, including areas in the Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie area.

Edmonds police officers investigate a shooting that occurred at 236/Edmonds Way Thursday in Edmonds, Washington. (Edmonds Police Department).
Jury convicts Edmonds man in fatal shooting of rideshare driver

After three hours, a 12-person jury convicted Alex Waggoner, 22, of second-degree murder for shooting Abdulkadir Shariif, 31, in January 2024.

Britney Barber, owner of Everett Improv. Barber performs a shows based on cuttings from The Everett Herald. Photographed in Everett, Washington on May 16, 2022. (Kevin Clark / The Herald)
August 9 will be the last comedy show at Everett Improv

Everett improv club closing after six years in business.

Logo for news use featuring Snohomish County, Washington. 220118
Snohomish County will host climate resiliency open house on July 30

Community members are encouraged to provide input for the county’s developing Communitywide Climate Resiliency Plan.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.