NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The members of the committee responsible for the report were chosen for their special competences and with regard for appropriate balance.

This report has been reviewed by a group other than the authors according to procedures approved by a Report Review Committee consisting of members of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine.

This material is based upon work supported by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, under Agreement No. 59-0700-1-141, the Department of Health and Human Services, Food and Drug Administration under Agreement No. 1-R13-FDO1495-01, and the Pew Charitable Trusts under Agreement No. 90-02372-000. Partial support was provided by the American Veterinary Medical Association and the American Feed Industry Association. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the organizations or agencies that provided support for this project.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

The use of drugs in food animals : benefits and risks / Committee on Drug Use in Food Animals, Panel on Animal Health, Food Safety, and Public Health, Board on Agriculture, National Research Council.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

1. Veterinary drugs. 2. Antibiotics in veterinary medicine. 3. Food animals—Diseases—Chemotherapy. 4. Veterinary drug residues. 5. Food of animal origin—Contamination. I. National Research Council (U.S.). Board on Agriculture. Panel on Animal Health, Food Safety, and Public Health. Committee on Drug Use in Food Animals.

SF917 .U74 1998

363.19′2—dc21

98-58111

About the cover: The background of the cover is an electron micrograph of Staphylococcus aureus and its secretion of a polysaccharide that increases the virulence of this microbe. When these bacteria secrete this matrix, they can decrease the ability of immune cells like neutrophils to attack and destroy them. Credit for the picture is given to Dr. Albert Guidry, Dr. William Wergin, and Mr. Eric Erbe, all associated with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service at Beltsville, Maryland.

No part of this book may be reproduced by any mechanical, photographic, or electronic process, or in the form of a phonographic recording, nor may it be stored in a retrieval system, transmitted, or otherwise copied for public or private use without written permission from the publisher, except for the purposes of official use by the U.S. government.