May 08, 2014 - Blogs
As food scientists, we should be at the front line in dispelling myths about foods. But science isn’t sexy, and boring facts generally make poor headlines. What’s worse, is how often the industry shoots itself in the foot by using marketing campaigns that play on stereotypical food myths and fears. One of those current campaigns is the use of antibiotic-free labeling on meat and poultry.
While it’s likely that overuse of antibiotics in meat production is a contributing factor in the very real and serious antibiotic-resistance problem, unlikely that raising animals completely without antibiotics is the solution to the problem. Not to mention cruel and wasteful if an animal is ill. And it’s also likely that many who seek an antibiotic-free label are not well-versed in the issues of antibiotic use and the laws govern antibiotic residues. (Any animal treated with antibiotics must go through a withdrawal period, so antibiotics are effectively eliminated from its system. USDA has a residue monitoring program to ensure that meat and poultry on the market is safe and that residues are not a public health issue.) Others might just be afraid of ingesting some unnatural substance—because as headlines have taught us, if it’s not natural, it must be toxic or akin to eating yoga mats or whatever.
But back to antibiotics in meat… The American Meat Institute (AMI) and Harris Poll conducted a survey in March 2014 that found 39% of adults in this country think that “unsafe levels of antibiotics are commonly present in the meat and poultry products found at the grocery store." This is despite a USDA monitoring program and government data that show violative antibiotic residues in meat and poultry are rare—and if found are pulled from the market. An interesting perspective and more information can be found on a blog by Dr. William James former chief veterinarian at USDA’s Food Safety & Inspection Service (FSIS), “Are residues residing in your meat?"(Spoiler alert: Due to testing and accumulated data from the National Residue Program, the “problem with residues [antibiotic as well as pesticide] in our meat is negligible at the national level."
To fight misconceptions about antibiotics in the food system AMI released a referenced and reviewed brochure called Antibiotics in Livestock & Poultry Production: Sort Fact From Fiction. If you’re a food scientist—whether you’re working on organic baby food or artificially flavored fried snacks—you might want to read it. You never know when there might be a pop quiz—or a chance to educate your neighbors, your local journalist or perhaps even your marketing department.
-Lynn A. Kuntz
As food scientists, we should be at the front line in dispelling myths about foods. But science isn’t sexy, and boring facts generally make poor headlines. What’s worse, is how often the industry shoots itself in the foot by using marketing campaigns that play on stereotypical food myths and fears. One of those current campaigns is the use of antibiotic-free labeling on meat and poultry.
While it’s likely that overuse of antibiotics in meat production is a contributing factor in the very real and serious antibiotic-resistance problem, unlikely that raising animals completely without antibiotics is the solution to the problem. Not to mention cruel and wasteful if an animal is ill. And it’s also likely that many who seek an antibiotic-free label are not well-versed in the issues of antibiotic use and the laws govern antibiotic residues. (Any animal treated with antibiotics must go through a withdrawal period, so antibiotics are effectively eliminated from its system. USDA has a residue monitoring program to ensure that meat and poultry on the market is safe and that residues are not a public health issue.) Others might just be afraid of ingesting some unnatural substance—because as headlines have taught us, if it’s not natural, it must be toxic or akin to eating yoga mats or whatever.
But back to antibiotics in meat… The American Meat Institute (AMI) and Harris Poll conducted a survey in March 2014 that found 39% of adults in this country think that “unsafe levels of antibiotics are commonly present in the meat and poultry products found at the grocery store." This is despite a USDA monitoring program and government data that show violative antibiotic residues in meat and poultry are rare—and if found are pulled from the market. An interesting perspective and more information can be found on a blog by Dr. William James former chief veterinarian at USDA’s Food Safety & Inspection Service (FSIS), “Are residues residing in your meat?"(Spoiler alert: Due to testing and accumulated data from the National Residue Program, the “problem with residues [antibiotic as well as pesticide] in our meat is negligible at the national level."
To fight misconceptions about antibiotics in the food system AMI released a referenced and reviewed brochure called Antibiotics in Livestock & Poultry Production: Sort Fact From Fiction. If you’re a food scientist—whether you’re working on organic baby food or artificially flavored fried snacks—you might want to read it. You never know when there might be a pop quiz—or a chance to educate your neighbors, your local journalist or perhaps even your marketing department.
-Lynn A. Kuntz
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