Sales of antibiotics for food animals rise by 6% — FDA

Drug makers sold 11.1 million kilograms (24.5 million pounds) of antibiotics for use in cattle, hogs and poultry last year, up 6% from 2021, chiefly because of a large increase in sales of antimicrobials that are not considered medically important, said the FDA on Monday. Despite year-to-year fluctuations, like last year’s increase, sales are much lower nowadays than before the FDA barred the use of antimicrobials to encourage weight gain in livestock.

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Medically important antibiotics, particularly tetracyclines, accounted for 54% of sales, or 5.99 million kilograms, in 2021, down by 1% from the previous year, said the FDA in an annual report.

Sales of antimicrobials that are not medically important climbed by 11%, to 5.12 million kilograms in 2021. Ionophores accounted for most of the sales, 4.2 million kilograms.

Beginning in 2017, the FDA required veterinary oversight of the use of medically important antibiotics in the feed or drinking water of food animals and barred use of the drugs as a growth promoter. Before implementation of FDA’s Guidance for Industry No. 213, sales of antibiotics for food animals ranged from 14 million kilograms a year to a peak of 15.6 million kilograms in 2015. Since then, sales have ranged from 11 million kilograms to 11.6 kilograms annually.

Restrictions on use of antibiotics were part of a government-wide drive to preserve the efficacy of antibiotics for treating disease in humans. Medically important antibiotics include penicillin, tetracycline, macrolides and aminoglycosides.

The FDA report on antibiotics and food animals is available here.