The head of a major Government review warns that consumers could contract superbugs from eating rare and undercooked meats, because of the rise of antibiotic use among animals
Eating rare steak and undercooked meats could put diners at risk of contracting superbugs, a major Government review has found.
A report on antibiotic resistance has accused the farming industry of increasing the threat to humans by pumping animals full of antibiotics.
The report commissioned by the Government warns that the use of antibiotics in agriculture has become “a critical threat to public health”.
Calling for strict targets to reduce the numbers of antibiotics meted out, the head of the review said the public could be at risk of contracting superbugs if they ate poorly cooked meats.
Lord Jim O’ Neill, former chief economist at Goldman Sachs, said “staggering” levels of antibiotic prescribing in modern farming methods was increasing risks to humans.
He called for ambitious global targets to reduce antibiotic use in agriculture, with a ban on the use of the drugs which are most important for humans.
The review said the rise of the drugs in farming is increasing the growth of drug-resistant strains, which could be passed from animals to humans.
In addition, the potentially lethal strains could be passed through the food chain, through eating undercooked meat, the review found.
Lord O’ Neill urged diners to be careful – and to only eat rare meats such as steak if they knew where it came from.
“My advice to consumers is that they have to make sure they cook it properly,” he said. “If you are going to choose to cook it as rare as possible you have to be aware of where it’s coming from.”
Almost half of the antibiotics used in the UK are used in agriculture, with drugs often meted out “preventively” - except in organic farming, where such methods are banned.
The chairman of the review on Anti-Microbial Resistance said it was not possible to quantify the level of risk from eating “poorly cooked meats” or to specify how any particular meat should be prepared.
He said global action was required to tackle the threat posed by modern farming methods.
“I find it staggering that in many countries most of the consumption of antibiotics is in animals, rather than humans,” he said. “This creates a big resistance risk for everyone.”
The report suggests countries should follow those such as Denmark, which has low levels of antibiotic use in animals despite being one of the largest exporters of pork in the world.
Prof Laura Piddock, Professor of Microbiology, University of Birmingham, said: “Over the last 25 years, academics have repeatedly called for a reduction in global antimicrobial use in animals reared for food production. Unfortunately, our calls have fallen on deaf ears.”
Prof Brendan Wren, professor of microbial pathogenesis and dean of faculty of infectious and tropical diseases, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, said: “Unfortunately a lot of our food, particularly meat products can be contaminated with bacteria which are increasingly more resistant to antibiotics. Raw food products should be handled with care and appropriately cooked.”
Nigel Gibbens, Chief Veterinary Officer for the UK, said: “To tackle the global threat posed by antibiotic resistance we must prevent unnecessary use in animal production and minimise the incidence of disease that would necessitate the use of antibiotics.
“This will not only reduce the potential risk to humans but also the risk to animal health and welfare of the development of resistance in bugs that cause disease only in animals.”
No comments:
Post a Comment