While they do their best to distance themselves from the information, the USDA has published the following info:
- A single antibiotic-resistant pathogen, MRSA—just one of many now circulating among Americans—now claims more lives each year than AIDS.
- “Use and misuse of antimicrobial drugs in food animal production and human medicine is the main factor accelerating antimicrobial resistance.”
- “Farmers and farm workers may get exposed to resistant bacteria by handling animals, feed, and manure.”
- [antibiotic resistance] in Salmonella strains was most likely due to the antimicrobial use in food animals
Not surprisingly, the USDA, under pressure from meat producers, has removed the report, and the researcher has been silenced. It’s pretty sad when the lives of millions are ignored in favor of the pursuit of commerical dollars. Especially when the industry would not die, just lessen due to lower yields increasing prices… I’m sure there will never be a surplus of beef in the USA.