Antibiotic Free? Really?

 

US raised livestock are often treated with antibiotics not only to treat infections but to prevent them. At the same time, antibiotic resistant infections are on the rise, with about 25% of them attributable to meat. Resistant bacteria may not respond to antibiotics, prolonging infections and making them more serious, preventing needed surgeries and causing severe illness and even death.

For this reason, if you eat meat, you are urged to buy only meat and poultry that has been raised without antibiotics. (The drugs may still be used to treat an actual infection, but not used as a preventive measure - there are less risky ways to do that.) The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) approves meat labels with claims such as "No Antibiotics Ever," "No Added Antibiotics" and "Raised without Antibiotics." But are these claims reliable?

Not very, according to a new study published in Science that found that a substantial portion of cattle destined for the ‘Raised without Antibiotics’ market have been given antibiotics.

The study tested 670 cattle from designated "raised without antibiotics" feed lots for traces of the drugs. They found that about 15% of the animals tested positive for "at least" one antibiotic. How can this be?

Because the USDA runs the label program on the honor system. (Seriously, they do.) To use "no antibiotic" claims on their labels, producers must submit documentation to the USDA. Once. After that, there are no inspections to verify compliance. Not ever. What could possibly go wrong, right?

What can you do? To be certain that the meat you buy is indeed raised without antibiotics first ignore any label claims. Instead, buy meat labeled "USDA Organic". Organic farms and processing facilities are inspected at least annually and are subject to unannounced "surprise" inspections at any time. Organic livestock must, by definition, be antibiotic-free.