Tackling Drug-Resistant Infections Globally, the final report of the group chaired by Jim O’Neill is a very welcome addition to a growing body of work on antimicrobial resistance.
The BPC Antibiotic Stewardship Scheme was set up in 2011 to develop a strategy for the responsible use of antibiotics in the UK poultry meat sector. Since 2011 BPC member companies have reduced their antibiotic use by 44%, and we are the first sector to share its data with the VMD.
This new report shares values with the work of the British poultry meat sector: reduction of unnecessary use, restricted use of highly-critical antibiotics, open reporting, and exploration of alternatives.
Antibiotics must be used responsibly, but are in some cases necessary to preserve the health and welfare of birds. The industry, along with Government, is exploring different techniques in human and animal medicine to reduce to risk of antimicrobial resistance.
BPC members have been very successful since 2011 and now is the time to benchmark the UK against the other agricultural sectors around Europe and globally.
Over the coming months we will be reviewing how the work of the British poultry meat sector can make a meaningful contribution to the recommendations made in this report.
