Camilla Tominey’s piece included a suggestion attributed to the Soil Association that ‘most pigs, poultry and dairy cows receive antibiotics routinely, whether or not they are unwell’. It also said on-farm antibiotic use ‘contributes significantly' to infection resistance in humans.
Responding in a letter to the paper, our animal health and welfare adviser, Catherine McLaughlin, said: “Royal correspondent Camilla Tominey makes some irresponsible and inaccurate comments about the use of antibiotics in farming (Sunday Express, February 22).
“Animals are not routinely given antibiotics – they are used to treat animal disease. Similarly, consumers are protected from inadvertent consumption of harmful veterinary medicines through legally required withdrawal periods.
“This prevents an animal treated with a veterinary medicine, which may potentially harm consumers, from entering the food chain until a sufficient time period has passed for the risk to be negligible.
“The NFU promotes positive farm health planning, with farmers and vets working together, to ensure the health of the animals on farm. We believe that antibiotics should be used as little as possible but as much as necessary.”