USA - FDA issues draft guidance on the judicious use of medically important antimicrobials in food-producing animals

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued draft guidance intended to help reduce the development of resistance to medically important antimicrobial drugs used in food-producing animals.

The draft guidance outlines the FDA’s current thinking on strategies to assure that antimicrobial drugs that are important for therapeutic use in humans are used judiciously in animal agriculture. The FDA acknowledges the efforts to date by various veterinary and animal producer organizations to institute guidelines for the judicious use of antimicrobial drugs, but the agency believes additional steps are needed.

The document recommends phasing in measures that would limit medically important antimicrobial drugs to uses in food-producing animals that are considered necessary for assuring animal health and that include veterinary oversight or consultation. These steps would help reduce overall use of medically important antimicrobial drugs, thereby reducing the pressure that generates antimicrobial resistance.