Abstract
BackgroundThere is concern that the use of antimicrobials in livestock production has a role in the emergence and dissemination of antimicrobial resistance in animals and humans. Consequently, there are increasing efforts to reduce antimicrobial use (AMU) in agriculture. As the largest consumer of veterinary antimicrobials in several countries, the pig sector is a particular focus of these efforts. Data on AMU in pig production in Ireland are lacking. This study aimed to quantify AMU on Irish pig farms, to identify the major patterns of use employed and to compare the results obtained to those from other published reports and studies.ResultsAntimicrobial use data for 2016 was collected from 67 Irish pig farms which represented c. 35% of national production. The combined sample population consumed 14.5 t of antimicrobial by weight of active ingredient suggesting that the pig sector accounted for approximately 40% of veterinary AMU in Ireland in 2016. At farm level, median AMU measured in milligram per population correction unit (mg/PCU) was 93.9 (range: 1.0–1196.0). When measured in terms of treatment incidence (TI200), median AMU was 15.4 (range: 0.2–169.2). Oral treatments accounted for 97.5% of all AMU by weight of active ingredient and were primarily administered via medicated feed to pigs in the post weaning stages of production. AMU in Irish pig production in 2016 was higher than results obtained from the national reports of Sweden, Denmark, the Netherlands and France but lower than the United Kingdom.ConclusionsPig production in Ireland is an important consumer of veterinary antimicrobials. The quantities and patterns of AMU on Irish pig farms are comparable to pig production in other European countries but higher than some countries with more advanced AMU reduction strategies. This AMU is characterised by a high proportion of prophylactic use and is primarily administered to pigs post weaning via medicated feed. Further studies to better understand the reasons for AMU on Irish pig farms and strategies to improve health among weaner pigs will be of benefit in the effort to reduce AMU.
Highlights
There is concern that the use of antimicrobials in livestock production has a role in the emergence and dissemination of antimicrobial resistance in animals and humans
The use of tetracyclines in medicated feed had the highest impact on consumption, was observed on 64.1% of farms and accounted for more than half all antimicrobial use (AMU) by weight of active ingredient (32.4% of TKDDDvet)
Antimicrobial use was highest in weaner pigs, which accounted for 69.7% of AMU by weight of active ingredient and 63.2% of TKDDDvet
Summary
There is concern that the use of antimicrobials in livestock production has a role in the emergence and dissemination of antimicrobial resistance in animals and humans. Data on AMU in pig production derives from a limited number of cross-sectional studies in countries such as Canada [13, 14], Austria [15], France [16, 17], Spain [18, 19] and Belgium [20] as well as two pan European studies [21, 22] Several of these studies show that the majority of antimicrobials are administered orally, as group treatments, are frequently applied for prophylactic (to prevent disease) or metaphylactic purposes (to treat a group containing some diseased animals) and primarily administered to pigs post weaning
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