The overuse of antibiotics in livestock farming is a major driver of antimicrobial resistance, a public health crisis that also reflects and reinforces poor farm animal welfare conditions.
The link between antibiotic use and animal welfare is direct: antibiotics are used prophylactically because the conditions animals are kept in are so poor that disease is otherwise inevitable. Reducing antibiotic use without improving welfare conditions leads to increased animal suffering from untreated disease. The welfare-positive solution is to improve husbandry conditions so that antibiotics are needed only for genuinely sick animals. Higher welfare systems — with more space, better nutrition, enrichment and reduced stress — require fewer antibiotics, creating a virtuous cycle that benefits animals, humans and the environment.