FAO Releases Action Plan to Stem Spread of Antibiotic Resistance

15 Sep 2016 --- As the UN General Assembly prepares to debate the challenges posed by medicine-resistant superbugs next week, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) releases its own action plan to reduce the spread of antimicrobial resistance.

The FAO has pledged to help countries equip their agricultural sectors and farms to respond to the growing threat of antimicrobial resistance on farms and in food through its new Action Plan.

Good farm hygiene and animal health practices reduces the need to use antimicrobial medicines. The increase in use and abuse of antimicrobial medicines in human and animal healthcare contributes to a rise in the number of disease-causing microbes resistant to traditional medicine treatments like antibiotics. 

Over the last 50 years food production methods have intensified and there has been an increase in antimicrobial use in agriculture. Animals are treated with these medicines either when they are already sick or to prevent diseases from spreading around a flock or within a farm. The use is prevalent in livestock but also the medicines are used in aquaculture and to a lesser extent antimicrobial substances are spread on plant crops and sometimes low concentrations are added to animal feed to stimulate growth. 

The subject, including the significant risk to human health posed by this kind of resistance, is to be discussed as part of a high-level UN event next week in New York. 

"Antimicrobial medicines play a critical role in the treatment of diseases of farm animals and plants. Their use is essential to food security, to our well-being, and to animal welfare. However, the misuse of these drugs, associated with the emergence and spread of antimicrobial-resistant microorganisms, places everyone at great risk,” according to the FAO plan which has been released today (Sept 15). 

Much of this debate focuses on the exposure to AMR pathogens in hospitals, clinics and so on, but the presence of AMR microorganisms in farming systems represents another vector and that is food, the FAO wants to stress. 

On top of the public health risks, AMR has implications for food safety and security as well as the livelihoods of millions of farmers and producers around the world. 

FAO's action plan highlights four key areas in the food and agriculture sphere:

- Improving awareness of AMR issues among farmers and producers, veterinary professionals and authorities, policy makers, and food consumers.
- Building national capacities for surveillance and monitoring of AMR and antimicrobial use (AMU) in food and agriculture.
- Strengthening governance related to AMU and AMR in food and agriculture.
- Promoting good practices in food and agricultural systems and the prudent use of antimicrobials.
- The FAO is aiming to help governments put in place national strategies for tackling AMR and AMU in their food and agricultural sectors by mid-2017. 

Estimated global antimicrobial consumption in the livestock sector currently runs over 60,000 tons per year. With demand for animal-sourced food products projected to grow steadily over the coming decades, the use of antimicrobials will continue to rise, FAO says. 

Antimicrobial usage is expected to expand within the animal production sector, especially for pigs and poultry. FAO is stressing the fundamental way to address AMR in food and agriculture is to ensure that farm and food systems adhere to best practices for hygiene, biosecurity, and animal care and handling. This reduces the need for antimicrobial medicines in the first place, as does vaccinating farm animals to build their natural ability to withstand disease.

FAO also advocates more research and development into alternatives to antimicrobials and antibiotics in food and agriculture. It has also been intensifying its engagement with farming communities, public health and veterinary specialists, regulators and food safety inspectors on AMR, holding workshops for example in Cambodia, China, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Thailand, Vietnam and Zimbabwe.