Advocacy group urges McDonald’s to reduce antibiotics in beef and pork items

The US Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) Education Fund has initiated a petition, urging McDonald’s to set a concrete timeline to phase out the routine use of antibiotics in its pork and beef products. When consumed by humans, these medically important drugs fuel antibiotic-resistant superbugs.

PIRG is the latest advocacy group to join the campaign against antibiotics in meat products sold by McDonald’s. The World Health Organisation (WHO), investors and lobbyists have put pressure on farmers to reduce or even abolish the practice of giving life-saving antibiotics to their livestock.

Scientific studies into the use of antibiotics to increase growth and for illness prevention demonstrate links between the use of drugs on healthy farm animals and the rise of dangerous superbugs. Antibiotic resistant superbugs kill an estimated 23,000 Americans each year and present a serious global health risk.

It is estimated that 70% of antibiotics used to fight human infection are sold for use on farm animals.

McDonald’s is the world’s largest hamburger chain restaurant and thus buys a significant amount of beef and pork. As a result McDonald’s has an inflated influence on farming practices.

“The Big Mac can make a big dent in stopping the misuse of antibiotics in our food system,” said PIRG antibiotics programme director Matthew Wellington.

McDonald’s has previously launched efforts to reduce antibiotics use. In 2016, the fast-food giant was the first to procure chicken raised without medically important antibiotics in the US, which influenced many rivals to follow suit.

Last August the company pledged to reduce the use of important human antibiotics in chickens globally in 2018, and to lay groundwork to reduce antibiotics in other sectors of the meat industry.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had reported a decrease in sales of medically important antibiotics by 14% from 2015-16, the first decline in annual sales since the agency began taking records in 2009.