increase font size
Sales of veterinary and horticultural antibiotics in New Zealand have decreased for a fifth year in a row.
Total sales of veterinary and horticultural antibiotics in New Zealand have decreased for a fifth year in a row, dropping by 23% in 2022.
The drop was a key finding of the ‘2022 Antibiotic Agricultural Compound Sales Analysis’ released last week by New Zealand Food Safety (NZFS). The report summarises the trends in the annual sales of veterinary and horticultural antibiotics as part of a national action plan to reduce antimicrobial resistance (AMR).
“The World Health Organisation has identified AMR as one of the top 10 global health threats facing humanity, so seeing a 23% drop in the sale of antibiotics for plants and animals is good news,” says NZFS deputy director- general Vincent Arbuckle.
“Antibiotics are antimicrobial medicines essential to the health of humans, animals, and plants, but using them excessively can lead to the emergence of resistant bacteria that don’t respond to antibiotic treatment.
“With AMR increasing around the world, and few new antibiotics being developed, careful use of the antibiotics we have will help to keep them effective.”
Of the 16 classes of antibiotics NZFS monitors, five are critically important for human health, meaning they should be considered the last line of defence in animal infections.
“We found that the total sales of antibiotics critical for human health decreased by 8% in 2022 to 6285kg. This is the lowest they’ve been since 2017, when 8952kg of antibiotics critically important to human health were sold,” says Arbuckle.
“Overall, the sale of antibiotics has dropped from 71,361kg in 2017 to 41,033kg in 2022. That’s a drop of 42%.
“The ongoing decrease in the use of antibiotics can be put down to a concerted effort from industry and NZFS to ensure these important medicines are used appropriately.
“The continued vigilance of veterinarians, farmers and other industry stakeholders, as well as our ongoing monitoring and support, are an effective way to minimise the incidence of AMR.
“We are also reviewing our regulatory oversight of antibiotics used in plants and animals, which could lead to a further reduction in antibiotic use as controls for some antibiotics might be tightened. This extensive piece of work has a five-year timeframe as it involves reviewing hundreds of antibiotic products.”
In 2017, the New Zealand Antimicrobial Resistance Action Plan was jointly developed by the Ministry of Health, New Zealand Food Safety and representatives from across the human health, animal health and agriculture sectors.
Its vision is for New Zealand to manage antimicrobials as a valuable shared resource and to maintain their efficacy so they can be used to treat infections in humans, as well as to manage diseases in animals and plants. An update to the action plan is due to be released next year.
With the global spread of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) making headlines around the world, the Department of Conservation (DoC) is taking steps to secure the safety of several endangered bird species that call New Zealand home.
In the late 1980s, planes flying from South America to New Zealand carried some unusual and precious travellers, tucked away in the business- class drinks cabinet, of all places.
While unrecorded in New Zealand, Bluetongue, an acute viral disease in ruminants, is endemic in tropical and sub-tropical climates.
The chair of the Otago Rural Support Trust, Tom Pinckney, says he believes that they will be especially busy in the coming months as the enormity of the floods hit home.
Michael and Cherie Berkers’ Holstein Friesian herd exemplifies how breeders can consistently develop successful cow families by seizing opportunities for improvement year after year.
Can discarded beef skins become premium dog food? Would camel milk work for your morning flat white? These are just two of the questions that will be answered next week at an international conference in Palmerston North.
Meat the Need, New Zealand’s dedicated charity delivering locally sourced protein meals to food-insecure communities, is launching an online National Charity Auction.
The turmoil and challenges faced by the kiwifruit industry in the past 30 years were put to one side but not forgotten at a glitzy night for 400 kiwifruit growers and guests in Mt Maunganui recently.
The Government's passing of new freshwater management laws has been welcomed by farmers, but could cause some councils a headache.
Irrigation New Zealand chief executive Vanessa Winning is stepping down after four years in the role.
Free workshops focused on managing risk in sharefarming get underway this week.
OPINION: The country's dairy farmers will now also have a hand in providing free lunch for schools.
OPINION: The abrupt departure of Synlait chief executive Grant Watson could be a sign that Chinese company Bright Dairy, the…
