From: Brayar@excite.com
Sent: Tuesday, January 09, 2001 7:47 PM
To: EXECSEC
Subject: About the Use of anti-bacterial agents on the farm

Commissioner Jane Henney  
Food and Drug Administration 


I am writing to express my concern oa the overuse of anti-bacterial agents
oin the farms , and ultimate harmful effects it may have on the public. This
letter was stimulated my a thoughtful warning from the Union of Concerned
Scientists, an organization of which I am a member, and am in complete
agreement with their analysis of the importance of the question. 

The overuse of antibiotics in agriculture is contributing to 
the emergence of untreatable diseases in people.  Reliable 
 datais unavailable  on antibiotic use in agriculture; it is badly    needed
for an  effective national strategy to reduce antibiotic use. 

 I urge you  urge her to establish a  reporting system to determine the
quantity of antibiotics used in U.S. agriculture. This action deserves a top
priority

                        

 BACKGROUND: 

 The rise in antibiotic resistance is slowly eliminating the 
  effectiveness of these drugs for treating infectious 
 diseases in people.  While the misuse of antibiotics in 
 human medicine is the larger contributor to the problem, 
  there is agreement among public health experts that the 
overuse of antibiotics in agriculture is also impacting 
  human health by contributing to the rise in drug-resistant 
 microorganisms.  But while there is growing acceptance of the causes of
antibiotic resistance, there are few publicly available data 
 on the quantity of antibiotics used in the United States - 
 data that are necessary for scientists to explore the links 
between antibiotic use and the development of drug  resistance and for
developing rational strategies to curb use.                                 


 The Union of Concerned Scientists has calculated antibiotic use in the
three major livestock =sectors using publicly available information on herd
size  approved drug lists and dosages, and estimates on the 
 = percent of herds treated.  The report estimates that a staggering 24.6
million pounds -  roughly 70 percent of all antibiotic drugs - are fed to
healthy cows, pigs, and chickens annually for nontherapeutic 
 purposes such as growth promotion.   By their calculations the 
 amount and total share of antibiotics used in livestock  dwarf the 17.8
million pounds recently reported by industry  for all agricultural use of
antibiotics.  Although they were devised by an indirect method, UCS's 
numbers are the best, most transparent estimate of 
agricultural antibiotic use available.  While they are good, 
 they are not good enough.  Government-guaranteed information 
 on U.S. antibiotic use is necessary for creating effective 
solutions for reducing antibiotic use.  The Food and Drug 
 Administration has recognized the need for collecting such 
 information, but it has not taken steps to establish the 
 needed system. 

 The FDA should move now to establish a system for collecting 
  basic data on agricultural antibiotic use in the United 
States.  The information should be collected for both human 
  and agricultural use and should include the class, indication, dosage, and
treatment period.

Thank you for your attention to this very important matter.
	Yours sincerely, 

	Dr. Ralph Bray, Porofessor Emeritus,
	Purdue University , W. Lafayette, IN.47907


 





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