Report On Antibiotic Use Among Quick Service Restaurants
by The Beef Checkoff
Posted: 2017-10-05 15:28:37 EST

On Wednesday, September 26, 2017, Consumers Union, Natural Resources Defense Council, Food Animal Concerns Trust, Friends of the Earth, U.S. PIRG Education Fund, and Center for Food Safety issued their report, Chain Reaction III: How Top Restaurants Rate on Reducing Use of Antibiotics in Their Meat Supply1. The 2017 Chain Reaction III Report and Scorecard ranks America’s 25 largest quick service and fast casual restaurant chains on their antibiotics policies.

The latest report found that 14 of the 25 restaurants have taken action or made changes to their antibiotic and sourcing policies, up from nine in 2016. The report notes that all of these changes occurred in the chicken sector and that there were no new commitments to limit antibiotic use in beef and pork. The organizations call for more widespread action, particularly as it relates to pork and beef.

Chain Reaction III comes nine months after the full implementation of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration Guidance 209 and 213, which ends the use of medically important antibiotics for growth promotion and increases veterinarian oversight for on-farm antibiotic use, yet the report does not acknowledge these and other proactive steps the industry is taking to ensure responsible antibiotic use in meat production. Rather, the report focuses on corporate policies and commitments made in press releases and on company websites.

A foundation for antibiotic stewardship in the beef community is the Beef Quality Assurance (BQA) program. A significant part of the BQA program involves antibiotic stewardship training about the appropriate use and administration of pharmaceutical products including following withdrawal times, the need for good record keeping, and the importance of a valid veterinarian-client-patient relationship.

The beef community is committed to the responsible use of antibiotics because maintaining effective tools for cattle health is integral to the viability of providing a robust and healthy food supply. This includes research to better understand how to effectively and appropriately use antibiotics to best protect animal and public health, directed by a research advisory group composed of a of university researchers within the agricultural community.