The farming industry ‘desperately’ needs rapid pen-side diagnostics and use of vaccines if it is to help tackle antimicrobial resistance, MPs were told this week.

Speaking to the UK parliament’s Health and Social Care committee, Gwyn Jones, chair of Responsible Use of Medicines in Agriculture (RUMA), said that antibiotic use and animal welfare could not be separated. Mr Jones was giving evidence as part of a session on antimicrobial resistance, along with human health professionals.

Jones said that he believes that the UK is close to being the world-leader in tackling antimicrobial resistance: “This is incredibly important not just for our own sakes but for the rest of the world and to persuade others to follow,” he told MPs.

“We need to look at it in a much more holistic way whereby what we do with animals – proper environment, proper care, training, all of those things – and with that, lower antibiotic use by default rather than focusing on numbers [antibiotic reduction targets] alone,” Jones said.

Review

This comes as the Food Standards Agency (FSA) published a review of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in chicken and pork was conducted by the FSA which showed there was a level of AMR. However, more research is needed to understand its impact and if the situation was improving.

The surveillance study was carried out between the beginning of September and end of October 2017 looking at 339 samples of raw chicken (whole or portions) and 342 samples of raw pork mince from retailers in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Samples including UK and imported meats showed that salmonella was detected in five out of 342 samples of pork, Campylobacter was detected in 85 out of 339 chicken samples. E. coli were detected more frequently in chicken samples – 165 out of 339, compared to only 35 pork samples.

The study states that “antimicrobial resistance was detected in a proportion of all the types of bacteria examined, with resistance to the most clinically important drugs1 generally appearing to be more prevalent in chicken isolates than pork.”

However, the firm conclusion was that not enough study into the area has been done to be able to draw tends or firm conclusions. Furthermore, if pork and chicken was cooked properly then there was no danger to human health.

The FSA said: “This survey provides a baseline of the prevalence, types and levels of AMR bacteria found in UK retail chicken and pork mince which the FSA can use to monitor its progress in reducing AMR in these foods and inform UK AMR strategy.”

The pork and poultry industry have made major strides in reducing the use of antibiotics. The poultry meat industry has seen an 82% decline in the use of antibiotics between 2012 and 2017, while there has been a 50% decline in the use of antibiotics in UK pigs between 2015 and 2017.