Antibiotic Stewardship in Livestock and Animal Welfare

The relationship between antibiotic use in livestock production and antibiotic resistance has welfare implications for both animals and the humans who depend on effective antibiotics.

Key Facts

Approximately 70% of medically important antibiotics globally are used in animal agriculture.
Prophylactic antibiotic use — treating animals to prevent disease rather than to treat it — is a significant driver of resistance development.
Antibiotic resistance threatens the effectiveness of treatments for bacterial infections in both humans and animals.
The EU banned the use of antibiotics as growth promoters in 2006; the US followed with restrictions in 2017.
Reducing antibiotic use in livestock requires addressing the root causes of disease: overcrowding, poor housing, and stress.
Animals with better welfare need fewer antibiotics; welfare improvement and stewardship are complementary goals.
Alternative approaches to disease management include vaccines, probiotics, and management improvements.
The One Health framework recognises that human, animal, and environmental health are interconnected in the resistance crisis.

Welfare Considerations

Antibiotic stewardship and animal welfare are more deeply connected than is often recognised. High antibiotic use in livestock is largely a symptom of poor welfare: overcrowded, stressed animals in barren environments have compromised immunity and are disease-prone, requiring antibiotic intervention. Reducing antibiotic use without addressing underlying welfare drivers simply means animals suffer more from disease rather than being treated. The genuine solution is improving welfare conditions so that animals need fewer antibiotics because they are healthier. This means that the global campaign for responsible antibiotic use in agriculture is also, necessarily, a campaign for better animal welfare conditions.

What You Can Do

Choose meat and dairy products from producers with low antibiotic use verified by independent certification.
Advocate for restrictions on prophylactic antibiotic use in livestock as a matter of both welfare and public health.
Support policies that link antibiotic stewardship with welfare improvement rather than treating them as separate issues.
Donate to research into non-antibiotic disease prevention strategies for livestock including vaccines and probiotics.
Engage with the One Health framework that recognises the connection between animal welfare and human health outcomes.