Table 3 Successful examples of antimicrobial stewardship in animal health
Country | Main measures implemented | Observed effects |
|---|---|---|
Australia | Fluoroquinolones (FQ) not approved for livestock use | Levels of FQ resistance among Escherichia coli in humans are among the lowest registered. FQ resistance in Escherichia coli is absent in food animals and foods. There are no FQ resistant strains of Campylobacter spp. or Salmonella spp. seen in food animals or domestic foods [90]. FQ resistance is absent or only at very low levels in domestically acquired Campylobacter or Salmonella infections in people. |
Canada | Voluntary withdrawal of ceftiofur in ovo use. | Thirty months later, resistance levels cut by half in Salmonella enterica from chicken meat and humans and in retail chicken Escherichia coli [91]. |
Denmark | Ceasing antibiotic growth promotion in weaning pigs | Ten years after, the average daily weight put on by each animal was 20 % higher than before the ban, demonstrating that weight gains in livestock are achievable by other means than antibiotics [88]. |
Netherlands | Usage of fluoroquinolones and third and fourth generation cephalosporins reduced to a minimum | Antimicrobial consumption in animals fell 56 % from 2007 to 2012 [92]. |