December 24, 2013

 

UK amends farm animal antibiotic resistance, surveillance report

 

 

The UK has amended the Veterinary Antibiotic Resistance and Sales Surveillance report (UK-VARSS 2012), which is the 15th in a series of reports designed to provide information about the sales of veterinary antimicrobial products in the UK.

 

The Veterinary Medicines Directorate states that the data for this report have been calculated using the same methods developed and used since 2002.

 

The main points and changes presented in this year's report are: Total sales of active ingredient, milligrams (mg), sold for food producing animals per population correction unit, (PCU) have been included for the first time in this report. The PCU is the unit of measure used in the EU to compare sales as related to animal populations and demographics. This figure was 55 mg/PCU for 2012, lower than but differing little from the five-year mean of 57 mg per PCU.

 

For critically important antibiotics (for human use), the PCU figures for 2012 are 6.3 mg for macrolides, 0.35 mg for fluoroquinolones and 0.2 mg for third/fourth generation cephalosporins. These figures have remained fairly stable over the five-year period.

 

In 2012, 60 grams of active ingredient was sold for each tonne of live weight animal slaughtered, which is in line with previous years.

 

For the first time in this report, sales of intramammary antibiotics per dairy cow in the national herd have been reported. In 2012 this equated to two grams of active ingredient per dairy cow. This figure ranges from 1.7 grams to 2.1 grams during 2008-12.

 

Total sales have varied little over a 'normalised' five-year period (2006-09 and 2012), with variation of 6% between highest and lowest sales years.

 

Sales for 2012 were 3% higher than the 2006-12 seven-year mean. The 'normalised' five-year period is shown because of atypically high and low sales figures for 2010 and 2011, respectively.

 

In 2012, 86% of antibiotics active in products authorised only for food-producing animals were for use in a combination of pigs and poultry.

 

In 2012, 349 kilogrammes more fluoroquinolone antibiotics were sold than in 2011. This equates to the same percentage in total sales in 2011 and 2012 (0.6%).

 

Sales of third and fourth generation cephalosporins increased in 2012 by 162 kilogrammes. This equates to the same percentage in total sales in 2011 and 2012 (0.3%).

 

With respect to administration type, medicated feeding stuff for food-producing animals accounted for 60% of veterinary antibiotic products sold, most of which are sold for use in pig and poultry farming.

 

Sales of coccidiostats in 2012 totalled 301 tonnes, an increase of 24 tonnes from 2011. Antifungal sales, at 6.2 tonnes, were the second lowest for the five-year period 2008-12.

 

Sales of antibiotics in 2012 for veterinary medicinal products authorised only for use in non-food-producing animals accounted for 35 tonnes, (9%), of the total annual sales of 409 tonnes.

 

Sales have remained mostly static over the five-year period 2008-12. It is currently not possible to determine what proportion of the 24 tonnes, (6%), of antibiotics sold for use in either food-producing or non-food-producing animals was used in companion animals.

 

No sales of antimicrobial growth promoters are reported as their use and sale were banned from January 1, 2006.