Front Group Spotlight

Lawmakers Move Against Over-use of Antibiotics on Farms

As more and more scientific authorities conclude that feeding antibiotics to livestock is promoting drug resistance among bacteria that attack humans, Congress has begun to take notice.

So has the Coalition for Animal Health and the Animal Health Institute. They noticed that federal legislation to phase out the use of medically important antibiotics (for humans!) over a two-year period would put quite a damper on their non-therapeutic-use in animal agribusiness agenda. Huh?!

Antibiotics kill bacteria when they’re given at a dosage level that’s effective, or therapeutic, against a specific bacteria, and given for an effective period of time. Non-therapeutic levels of antibiotics, such as what’s added to CAFO livestock feeds, mask signs of disease, encourage resistant bacteria to reproduce, and make animals’ already fragile immune systems from overcrowding and filth even less capable of developing an effective response to disease and stress. Over hundreds of thousands of generations of animals and…we don’t even think there’s a numerical quantifier for the number of generations of bacteria.

So who are the Coalition for Animal Health and the Animal Health Institute, exactly? Are they even people? Ultimately, but outwardly they’re a floating consortium of animal agribusiness major players with a bottom-dollar interest in keeping as many “food” animals in as little physical space as possible, for as little financial input as possible, with as little regulatory oversight as possible, for as big a profit as possible. Who floats in and out depending on the need for, direction, and speed of spin?

American Association of Swine Veterinarians
American Farm Bureau Federation
American Feed Industry Association
American Sheep Industry Association
American Veterinary Medical Association
Animal Agriculture Alliance
Federation of Animal Science Societies
National Broiler Council
National Cattlemen’s Beef Association
National Chicken Council
National Pork Board
National Pork Producers Council
National Turkey Federation
United Egg Association
United Egg Producers

C’mon, you know this bunch already! We keep tabs on them when and wherever possible.

Does anybody in your US government even know how much antibiotics go into livestock feed every year, year after year? You’d think somebody would, with the USDA and the FDA and all the other A-listers out there keeping the “food” animals healthy and happy and the grocery stores shelves clean and safe for you. Turns out they don’t have a clue. Surprised? Why?

It took the Union of Concerned Scientists to even attempt a rough estimate six years ago. The government’s own General Accounting Office tried to nail it down three years ago, with not much better results. But page 73 has a nice chart-type go at it.

So what’s the point of this lengthy rant with no pictures to speak of? Up top: know your front groups. Words are infinitely malleable, forgiving, disposable. But brands, like “Animal” and “Health” are Everything.