The American Meat Science Association (AMSA) is pleased to announce that, Drs. John Schmidt, Scott Ladely and Morgan Scott will be the featured speakers in the AMSA 68th RMC Antimicrobial Resistance in Livestock Production symposium, on Monday, June 15. This session is sponsored by Corbion PURAC.
Antimicrobial Resistance in Beef Production: Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) has been declared a critical threat to public health by governmental, medical, and scientific organizations. Specific high priority issues relating to AMR in beef production will be identified and research examined. Several studies on AMR in beef production have been published, with conflicting conclusions regarding impacts on public health. The factors contributing to these conflicting conclusions will be considered. Dr. John Schmidt, Research Microbiologist at the U.S. Meat Animal Research Center, USDA, Agricultural Research Service will discuss the suitability of traditional culture, genomic, and metagenomic methods to address persistent data gaps and controversial issues.
Issues of Antimicrobial Resistance in Poultry Production: Public perceptions of issues of antimicrobial resistance in poultry production have gotten far ahead of the science on these issues. Antimicrobial resistance has been increasing in poultry isolates in ways that are apparently independent of antimicrobial usage and most prominently in a clone of Salmonella not largely associated with human infections. Dr. Scott Ladely, Microbiologist for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food Safety and Inspection Service, Outbreaks Section will discuss antimicrobial susceptibility and plasmid replicon typing of Salmonella Kentucky isolates recovered from broilers.
Issues of Antimicrobial Resistance in Pork Production: Challenges abound when trying to identify the optimal management practices for using antibiotics in animal agriculture; that is, when considering potential risks to public health. At present, it is very clear that antibiotics are highly effective tools for managing infectious diseases and improving animal health and well-being when used for treatment, control and prevention. Growth promotion uses are likewise effective but are presently being phased out by regulators and industry. Alternatives to antibiotics are actively under investigation for their potential to achieve similar outcomes; preferably fewer risks to human health. Unfortunately, alternatives such as the metals (Cu, Zn) introduce their own set of problems. Dr. Morgan Scott Professor at Texas A&M University will provide an overview of the challenges associated with measuring and addressing risks associated with the use of antibiotics (and their alternatives) in pork production. Further, it will lay out a framework for weighing less tangible – though potentially very serious – public health risks against immediate and visible obligations to animal health and welfare when setting policy at the farm, industry, and national levels.
The AMSA 68th Reciprocal Meat Conference (RMC) will be held June 14-17, 2015 at University of Nebraska-Lincoln, in Lincoln, Neb. For more information regarding the AMSA 68th RMC please visit: www.meatscience.org/rmc.
