Antibiotic Stewardship in Animal Agriculture

Overuse of antibiotics in livestock production drives antimicrobial resistance that threatens both human and animal health, while animal welfare improvements that reduce disease incidence represent the most sustainable long-term solution.

Key Facts

Approximately 73% of global antibiotic use is in food-producing animals, with much used for growth promotion rather than treatment
The EU banned antibiotic growth promoters in 2006 — the US followed suit in 2017
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is projected to cause 10 million human deaths annually by 2050 under current trajectories
Prophylactic antibiotic use — treating entire flocks or herds before disease occurs — remains common in high-density systems
Higher welfare production systems show lower antibiotic use rates because disease incidence is lower
Denmark reduced livestock antibiotic use by 50% over a decade while maintaining production levels through management improvements

Welfare Considerations

Antibiotic stewardship in animal agriculture is simultaneously a human health issue and an animal welfare issue. When antibiotics lose effectiveness due to resistance, the animals that need treatment suffer from diseases that could have been controlled. The reliance on prophylactic antibiotics in intensive systems masks underlying welfare problems — animals in stress-free, well-managed environments with low disease pressure need far fewer antibiotics. The connection between welfare and antimicrobial stewardship is therefore bidirectional: better welfare conditions reduce antibiotic need, and reducing antibiotic use requires improving the welfare conditions that drive disease. Policy approaches that combine antibiotic restrictions with investments in welfare improvements have demonstrated that reduced antibiotic use and maintained productivity are compatible.

What You Can Do

Choose meat and dairy products from producers demonstrating responsible antibiotic use or antibiotic-free certification
Support advocacy for mandatory antibiotic use reporting and prescription-only antibiotic access globally
Reduce meat consumption, particularly from intensive systems where antibiotic use rates are highest
Advocate for welfare improvements that reduce the disease pressure driving antibiotic use
Support research into alternatives to antibiotics including vaccines, probiotics, and phage therapy