Katie Couric recently took an amazingly hard look at antibiotic overuse in factory farmed animals and the link to drug resistant infections in humans like MRSA (methicillin resistant staph). She talked to people who work for chicken producers, and who got sick, more than once, with life-threatening infections that were very difficult to treat via the usual antibiotic drugs.
The mega meat companies, who routinely mix antibiotics with feed in order to promote growth and prevent disease, defended the practice, saying it was necessary to keep costs down and profits up. The veterinarian for the National Pork Board insisted that farmers use antibiotics “responsibly.” But the issue has been under scrutiny for some time and even the FDA is now turning its attention to the matter and supports restrictions on the use of antibiotics.
The problem with the practice is that when animals are treated with a certain antibiotic over time, the bacteria living in those animals become resistant to that drug. And then when people ingest the resistant bacteria via improperly cooked meat or from handling the animals or raw meat, and then become ill, they increasingly do not respond to antibiotic treatment. Some of them die. It’s a nasty problem and it’s going to get even nastier.
It was refreshing to see the mainstream media call attention to this growing problem. The news clip showed Katie wearing grubby overalls and walking through pens jammed with hogs that had no room to turn around. Some shots showed dead pigs sprawled out in the mud and spilling out of dumpsters. I hope this news story raised a few eye brows and made people think twice about eating the rest of their pork chop. Perhaps the story will have an unstoppable ripple effect and cause the FDA to outright ban the practice, or at least implement some kind of oversight.
Twenty-five years ago, Norwegians were also dying from killer bacteria. But Norway’s public health system fought back with an aggressive program that made it the most infection-free country in the world. A big part of that program was hugely cutting back on the use of antibiotics. Not only that but the Danish pork industry has grown by 43 percent since the ban.
If they can do it in Norway, why couldn’t we do it here? According to the CBS report, about 70,000 people died last year in the U.S. from untreatable infections, more people than died from AIDS.
The CBS story was a big step in the right direction because it showed people up close and personal what conventional farmers are doing and how its harming us directly. This kind of mainstream coverage helps greatly to raise awareness and help further the organic movement.
Many shoppers and members of Oryana are vegetarian, but if you do eat meat, let this issue be a reminder to us to support our local farmers who do not feed antibiotics and other toxic additives like hormones to their animals. Oryana is a great source of all-natural and organic meats. You can feel safe eating products from our farmers and know that you aren’t contaminating your children with antibiotic resistant bugs.
Take Chris and Pennie Halpin of Land of Goshen, who supply Oryana with beef, pork, lamb, goat meat, and eggs. The Halpins, who farm in Kaleva, grow their own non-GMO grains and feed their animals local hay. The animals are all pastured and are fed raw milk-based probiotics to keep them healthy. Chris also uses herbal remedies such as oregano oil and grapeseed extract for healing. “We haven’t had antibiotics on the farm in 14 years,” says Chris.
Chris and Pennie Halpin and family
If you’re interested in becoming involved in the antibiotic debate, click here to ask your representatives to cosponsor the Preservation of Antibiotics for Medical Treatment Act.
