Antimicrobial policy interventions in food animal production in South East Asia
BMJ 2017; 358 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.j3544 (Published 05 September 2017) Cite this as: BMJ 2017;358:j3544Read the full collection
- Flavie Luce Goutard, senior epidemiologist12,
- Marion Bordier, PhD candidate1,
- Clémentine Calba, research assistant1,
- Elisabeth Erlacher-Vindel, head of science and new technologies department3,
- Delfy Góchez, chargée de mission3,
- Katinka de Balogh, senior officer4,
- Carolyn Benigno, antimicrobial projects coordinator4,
- Wantanee Kalpravidh, regional manager4,
- Francois Roger, director12,
- Sirenda Vong, regional technical lead, antimicrobial resistance5
- 1CIRAD, UMR ASTRE, F-34398 Montpellier, France
- 2Kasetsart University, 10900 Bangkok, Thailand
- 3World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE), Paris, France
- 4Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific, Bangkok, Thailand
- 5World Health Organization, Regional Office for South East Asia, New Delhi, India
- Correspondence to: flavie.goutard{at}cirad.fr
Key messages
Key policies for tackling antimicrobial resistance are still lacking in many countries in the South East Asia region, including veterinary surveillance of antimicrobial resistance and antimicrobial use, raising awareness among professionals and farmers, and strengthening the national drug regulatory authorities in the animal health sector
Although bans on over-the-counter antibiotics and use of antibiotics as growth promoters have been introduced in many countries, enforcement remains a challenge
Further evidence is needed to understand local barriers and to propose viable, policy driven solutions
The World Health Organization, World Organisation for Animal Health, and the Food and Agriculture Organization have important roles in identifying best practices in the region to support development of national policies
Antibiotics and other antimicrobial agents are widely used in food animal production for disease prevention and treatment in animals, to contain disease spread, to prevent contamination of the food chain, and to increase productivity.1 However, their wide use in humans and animals leads to the emergence of antimicrobial resistance, a general term that encompasses antibiotic resistance.2 In September 2016, the United Nations recognised the global rise of antimicrobial resistance as a threat to health and human development.3
Antimicrobial resistance will increase infectious disease outbreaks, slowing down livestock productivity and disrupting international trade. Recent projections estimated that by 2050 global livestock production would fall by 3% to 8% each year, resulting in the decline in the annual global gross domestic product of 1.1%-3.8%. Because of higher disease incidence, these falls will affect low income countries more severely, with a predicted rise of 6.2 to 18.7 million in the number of extremely poor people by 2030.4 The UN has called for a limit on the overuse of antimicrobial agents, …