Antibiotics

Solutions

Non-therapeutic use of antibiotics in the agricultural industry must be stopped. Increased growth and productivity in livestock can be achieved through an improvement in farming methods, such as better hygiene and cleanliness, and less cramped conditions.

More research must be carried out to create other workable alternatives. An Australian livestock research team (CSIRO) has been testing chickens with ‘cytochines’ – proteins produced naturally in the body – for an improvement in their immune response and disease fighting capability.

On 1st January 2006, the European Union banned the feeding of all antibiotics to livestock for growth promotion purposes. Long-term, low-level feeding of antibiotics to animals creates the conditions for the development of antibiotic-resistant bacteria which may be transferred to consumers in improperly cooked meat and result in illness or death. These laws will preserve the effectiveness of antibiotics for human use.

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