Antibiotic Residues In Meat : A Serious Public Health Issues

November 15, 2023

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Antibiotic Residues In Meat : A Serious Public Health Issues

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a major threat worldwide and more important in developing countries including in India where it is considered as emergence due to the burden of various infectious diseases, use of antibiotics and resulting occurrence of antimicrobial resistance (Laxminarayan et al., 2013, 2016). AMR along is becoming the reason of making victims of people more than the total victims of cancer and road accidents, and it is alarming that by 2050 this figures will be much more than 10 million than that of the present figure of 700,000 people losing the battle to AMR per year (O’Neill, 2016). While projecting disaster effect of AMR on economic point of view, it is suggested that AMR could alone diminish 2-3.5% of gross domestic product (GDP) equating a total value of USD100 trillion to the world (O’Neill, 2014). Indiscriminate in the form of overuse and misuse of antibiotics or other antimicrobial agents are the main contributing factor for the development of such high rates of resistance (WHO, 2014).The public health researchers all over the world have termed these resistant microorganisms as ‘nightmare bacteria’ that often called ‘pose a catastrophic threat’ to human beings. There is an increased demand for animal products in India which is related to rising incomes and growing population. Therefore, in order to stay competitive, producers mainly rely on antibiotics and other antimicrobial agents to promote growth, prevent the spread of diseases and treat sick animals. The issue of antibiotic resistance becomes more pronounced and concerned due to the fact that most of the commonly used antibiotics in animals are the same that are used for the treatment of human beings. This has raised concerns about reducing the effectiveness of such antibiotics when used for treating human infections It has been reported that antibiotic consumption in 71 countries increased by 36% between 2000 and 2010 with Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa (BRICS) which account for three-quarters of this increase (Van Boeckel et al., 2015). The use of antibiotics and other antimicrobial agents in chickens, in particular, is expected to increase by triple in India by 2030. Increasing and indiscriminate in the form of overuse and misuse of antibiotics or other antimicrobial agents is considered as main factor for increase in antibiotic resistance, in both humans and animals. Resistant bacteria or microorganisms could be transmitted between humans and animals through various routes such as contact, food products, and the environment. It has been also reported that antibiotic residues, as well as resistant microorganisms, have been found in live animals in India as well as in related animal food products and in many cases, within the same community, the same strains of resistant bacteria are also detected in human and environmental sources. The global rise of AMR has attracted the attention of World Health Organization (WHO) and several other stakeholders. India has also framed its National Action Plan (NAP) for AMR (GOI, 2017). As it is a multi-faceted problem, due consideration and importance should be given to the collaborative efforts of the health authorities dealing with human health, animal health, food, and the environment.

Meat is an important component of the human food basket and there is an increase demand for meat throughout the world. To meet consumer demand, intensification of animal production in recent times has been aided by the use of veterinary medicinal products viz antimicrobial drugs, growth promotors to prevent or treat diseases and to promote growth. Widespread use of antibiotics without following correct withdrawal period in the veterinary field has paved way for development of antibiotic residues in foods of animal origin, which can lead to adverse effects on consumers. With growing public health concern regarding food safety, efforts for improving food safety has occurred for several reasons the most important of which may be increased consumer awareness and regulatory pressures to ensure food safety with reduction in the use of antibiotics and growth promotors, leading to presence of residues. Therefore, food processors worldwide implement various approaches to ensure the safety of the foods they produce.

ANTIBIOTICS/ANTIMICROBIALS

Antibiotics/Antimicrobials are substances which are produced naturally or synthetically, and capable of killing or inhibiting the growth of microorganisms. Antibiotics are used in animal production at therapeutic level for treatment of the diseases and sub therapeutic levels in feed to promote the growth. They are administered to the animals by various routes like parenteral, topical, oral (through water and feed), intra-mammary and intra-uterine.

SOURCES OF ANTIBIOTIC RESIDUES IN MEAT

Indiscriminate use of antibiotics in foodproducing animals will leave residues in foodstuffs of animal origin like meat, milk, and eggs. India is producing beef either by sacrificing unwanted male and/or culled bovines and pose high threat to have high antibiotic residues since it does not have unique bovine breeds as food animals. These residues will enter in to the food chain when they are administered inadvertently to the food animals due to various reasons like a) Misuse of approved drugs (Illegal or Excess use) b) Inappropriate dosage levels and dosing schedules c) Inappropriate route of administration d) Use in an unintended species/age group e) Improperly prepared/labeled feed f) Lack of knowledge concerning approximate withdrawal time g) Extra label use h) Poor livestock production practices.

PUBLIC HEALTH HAZARDS IMPOSED BY ANTIBIOTIC RESIDUES

The hazards due to antibiotic residues can be categorized in to two types as directshort term hazards and indirect-long term hazards, according to duration of exposure to residues and the time onset of health effects (Muhammad et al., 2009). Various effects of antibiotic residues impose on both animal and humans are as follows: a) Antibiotic resistance by bacteria in animals- Low levels of antibiotic exposure would result in alteration of micro flora, cause disease and possible development of resistant strains which cause failure of antibiotic therapy in clinical situations. For example, Tetracyclines induces antibiotic resistance in coliforms present in the human intestine (Lozano and Trujillo, 2012). b) Development of resistant strains of bacteria and transfer of resistance genes from animals to man (Methicillin-resistant Stahphylococcus aureus, Vancomycin-resistant Enterococci, Multi-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Penicillin-resistant Pneumococci) c) Drug allergy/ Hypersensitivity reactions (Penicillins, Cephalosporins, Lincomycin, Quinalones and Sulphonamides) d) Drug Toxicity: Mutagenic [Nitrofurazone (Ahmed et al., 2008), Carbadox and Olaquindox (Lozano and Trujillo, 2012)], Teratogenic [Amoxicillin (Abou-Tarboush, 1994)], Genotoxic (Furazolidone, Carbadox, Chlromphenicol) (Lozano & Arias, 2008), Carcinogenic [Nitrofurazone, Furazolidone (WHO, 1993), Chlromphenicol (Doody et al., 1996) and Oxytetracycline (Mitchell et al., 1998)] and Neurotoxic (Aminoglycosides on newborn animals, Arsanylic acid in pigs and poultry) e) Fatal reactions- Salinomycin and Narasin in turkeys (Lozano and Trujillo, 2012). f) Side effects: Reproductive toxicity [Amoxicillin (Abou-Tarboush, 1994), Chloramphenicol and Doxycycline (Schaefer et al., 1996)], Cardiac toxicity (Eythromycin), Nephrotoxicity [Aminoglycosides and amphotericin (Granowitz and Brown, 2008)], Ototoxicity [Aminoglycosides and Macrolides] and Bone marrow toxicity [Chlromphenicol (Doody et al., 1996)].

POSSIBLE STRATEGIES FOR PREVENTION OF ANTIBIOTIC RESIDUES

1) The first step in residue prevention is to make individuals and organizations aware of the problem by veterinarians, organizations and government agencies. 2) Adoption of strict hygiene and good management practices at farm level may reduce need for antibiotics. Vaccination to prevent infectious diseases may be of great value in the near future. 3) Antibiotic residues can be avoided by a well-planned drug use program. Irrational use of antibiotics in veterinary practices should be avoided and recommendations of the drug manufacturer regarding dosage, route of administration, treatment intervals and storage condition of antimicrobials should be followed. 4) Residue control strategy is based on a two-step approach: Detection of antibiotic residues using rapid screening procedures and instant grading and prohibition of food containing antibiotics more than MRL. 5) Development of simple and economic field test to identify drug residue in edible animal products to make sure that is free of inhibitors after the end of the withholding period. 6) Antibiotic withdrawal period should be established and strict observation of antibiotic withdrawal period should be made until the residues are negligible or no longer detected. 7) Processing of meat helps for the inactivation of some antibiotics. Refrigeration causes disappearance of penicillin. The freezing of animalderived foods may also contribute to the reduction of some antibiotic contamination. The use of heat treatment, activated charcoal, resin and UV irradiation also help for antibiotic inactivation. 8) The use of alternatives to antibiotics, such as plant-derived antimicrobial substances (Ethno-veterinary practices), probiotics and immune modulators, may represent a promising option. 9) Maintaining treatment records of cows in order to determine appropriate withholding periods also helpful.

Antibiotics for therapeutic and prophylactic use—

Antibiotics can generally be used for therapeutic purposes by administering high doses for a relatively shorter period to individual or small groups of animals or for prophylactic purposes, where animals are exposed to moderate doses for a relatively longer duration (Marshall and Levy, 2011). In case of livestock production and management, use of antibiotics or antimicrobial agents is inevitable as they are not only crucial for treatment of diseases, prevention of diseases, modification of physiological function, promoting growth and production but also for ensuring food safety point of view (Falowo and Festus, 2019). Antibiotics are known to inhibit DNA synthesis (sulfa drugs e.g. sulfamethoxazole trimethoprim, and quinolones e.g. ciprofloxacin, norfloxacin and levofloxacin), RNA and protein synthesis (aminoglycosides, tetracyclines, chloramphenicols), target folic acid metabolism (trimethoprim, sulphonamides), or disrupt cell membrane and cell wall synthesis of microorganisms (β-lactams e.g. penicillins, ampicillin, cloxacillin and amoxicillin) responsible for dissemination of infections (Velicer et al., 1999; Kohanski et al., 2010; Diarra et al., 2014). In veterinary practice, β-lactams, tetracyclines, chloramphenicols, macrolides, lincosamide, sulphonamides, nitrofuranes, trimethoprim, polymyxins and quinolones are used (Cháfer-Pericás et al., 2010) for controlling as well as monitoring the important infections such as Salmonella, Leptospira, Campylobacter fetus, Streptococcus suis, Escherichia coli, Enterecoccus (Markey et al., 2013).

Antibiotics for growth promotion

In 1940s, the growth-promoting effect of antibiotics or antimicrobial agents was detected when improvement of growth in animals was observed by feeding dried mycelia of Streptomyces aureofaciens containing chlortetracycline residues (Castanon, 2007) and it became common practice within few years. As per the National Office of Animal Health (NOAH, 2019), antibiotics or any antimicrobial growth promoters are often used to “help growing animals digest their food more efficiently, get maximum benefit from it and allow them to develop into strong and healthy individuals”. Although the main mechanism of action is not clear, it may be related to interactions between the antibiotics and the gut microbiota (Dibner and Richard, 2005). It is believed that these antibiotics act by suppressing the sensitive populations of intestinal microbiota to reduce the loss of net energy from microbial fermentation and divert it to the growth of animals. Moreover, they may facilitate improved nutrient absorption by thinning of intestinal barriers, minimizing toxins production by intestinal bacteria, and reducing incidences of subclinical disease incidences (Butaye et al.,2003). Tetracyclines, chloramphenicol, and sub-therapeutic doses of procaine penicillin supplemented rations or feeds were extensively used to promote the growth and egg production in poultry (Marshall and Levy, 2011; Kabir et al., 2004).

Antibiotic residues in meat products

Residues are the active ingredients of the metabolites that remain in meat or any other foodstuff for the animal through which the medicinal products in question have been administered (EC,2002). The access of antibiotics into meat products including milk and fish usually come from its use for different purposes while controlling/ preventing diseases. Sometimes prolonged use in low doses result into the transfer of antibiotics into the products in a very larger form. It has been reported that about 90 percent of antibiotics used in various food animals including poultry are at subtherapeutic concentration (Jayalakshmi et al., 2017) and out of that 70% is for the purpose of diseases prevention and 30% is for growth promotion. Antibiotics generally get eliminated from the body rapidly and disappear from blood and tissue within few days (Tadesse and Tadesse, 2017). However, indirect contamination of antibiotics through feeds along with contamination of feed with faecal recycling is also a very common incidence and usually through this route it enters into the body of the untreated animals also (Darwish et al., 2013). The contamination of the watercourses particularly the use of antibiotics in fish farming can also be a potent source imparting residues to the animal products through the cycle of soil, plant, water and the animal body (Bacanlý and Baºaran, 2019). Table 1 shows the presence of different antibiotics in the animal products. Such presence of antibiotic residues constantly get the chance and opportunity to get entrance into the human body system and consequently there will be systemic response within the physiological limit of the human body and develop antibiotic resistance and remain recessive along with the immune system. When that very individual get treated for obvious reasons with antibiotics, fails to get the benefits of it and succumbed to diseases owing to the reason of antibiotics resistance phenomenon. World Health Organization has given a caution that human society is likely to face a catastrophe by 2050 where the factor of antibiotic resistance would be a giant killer of human lives, no way inferior to any deadly diseases including cancer.

Long-lasting health impact

The residues from antibiotics in meat and meat products can potentially be transmitted to humans via consumption of contaminated edible tissues and may lead to several pathological implications. Continuous consumption of meat or meat products contaminated with toxic residues induce changes in the biotransformation of endogenous and exogenous compounds resulting in a variety of health problems, particularly endocrine dysfunction, carcinomas and neurological disorders (Muthukumar and Mandal, 2017). Residual β-lactams, including cephalosporin and penicillin, have been reported to elicit allergic reactions and can cause dermatitis, cutaneous eruptions and anaphylaxis in humans via ingestion of contaminated meat products (Katz and Brady, 2000; Paige et al., 1997). Residual levels of tetracycline have been reported to lead to poor development of foetuses, staining of teeth in young children, gastrointestinal disorders, and pro-inflammatory, cytotoxic, and immuno-pathological effects (Mund et al., 2017). Chronic exposure to oxytetracycline may lead to leucocytosis, lung congestion, toxic granulation of granulocytes and thrombocytopenic purpura (Lawal et al., 2015; Palmieri et al., 2014). Erythromycin has teratogenic effect–increased probability of cardiac malformation and pyloric stenosis was observed in infants (JECFA, 1997; Maheshwari, 2007). Prolonged exposure or repeated use of chloramphenicol has carcinogenic and genotoxic effects – most serious effect is aplastic anaemia and generally fatal in nature (Payne et al., 1999). Persistence of sulphamethazine and furazolidone residues in humans is known to pose immuno-pathological effects (such as autoimmunity, carcinogenicity). Ampicillin may cause allergic reactions, asthmatic attack, exfoliative dermatitis, anaemia, thrombocytopenia, thrombocytopenic purpura, eosinophilia, leukopenia and agranulocytosis (Köklü et al., 2003). Streptomycin has shown to have adverse effects on vestibular mechanisms in the inner ear leading to loss of balance, hypersensitivity, skin rashes and induced fever. It also exhibited neurotoxicity in newborn animals (Katz and Brady, 2000). In order to control antibiotic residues, the steps should be initiated in the form of using alternatives to antibiotics, reduction in unnecessary use and also reduction in prophylactic use of antibiotics. This will help to minimize the entry of antibiotics into the animal body. Besides, residual control strategies should be initiated with two-step approaches-detection of residues with precision and confirmation. The whole procedure should have a synergistic approach involving all the stakeholders including government, producers, veterinarians, and other interested organizations even without depending solely on government agencies. All the possible ways of contamination of antibiotics should be monitored constantly and thereby a good amount of antibiotic could be blocked for getting entry into animal production system. In relation to meat products, cooking and freezing procedures are important to inactivate the antibiotic residues even heating also having effect on inactivation of antibiotics (Darwish et al., 2013). Many workers have reported that some antibiotics such as beta-lactamase, quinolones, sulphonamides, tetracycline, etc are temperature-dependent and prolonged heating time can reduce the antibiotic residues (Tian et al., 2017). Some other methods like using activated charcoal, resin, and UV radiation might have beneficial effect on antibiotic activation (Nisha, 2008). Besides, the early, easy and economic field tests for detection of antibiotic residues in meat and meat products would be helpful to control the menace of antibiotic resistance Antimicrobial resistance Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) means naturally susceptible bacteria acquire ways to withstand the effects of drugs and not being affected by it. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has described AMR as “one of the world’s most pressing health problems”. Long term overexposure to antimicrobials or its repeated use in humans and food animals is the single most causative factor responsible for increased antimicrobial resistance. Whereas other factors that influence the development of antibiotic resistance include concentration of drug, duration of exposure, organism type, antimicrobial type and immune status of host (WHO, 1997). The antibiotic resistance can be of two types: 1. Intrinsic resistance, which occurs when the bacterial species are able to innately resist the activity of an antibacterial agent – either the microorganisms naturally do not possess target sites for the drugs or they naturally have low permeability to those drugs because of the differences in the chemical nature of microbial membrane structures and of the drug to restrict its entry for initiating action (Wise, 2002; Yoneyama and Katsumata, 2006). 2. Acquired or active resistance, whereby a naturally susceptible microorganism acquires ways of not being affected by the drug. This is the most important mechanism of antimicrobial resistance, which may occur due to following reasons (Fluit et al., 2001; Langton et al., 2005; Yoneyama and Katsumata, 2006; Fred and Tenover, 2006): l presence of an enzyme that degrades or inactivates the antimicrobial agent l a mutation in the antimicrobial agent’s target, which reduces the binding of the antimicrobial agent l post-transcriptional or post-translational modification of the antimicrobial agent’s target, which reduces binding of the antimicrobial agent l reduced uptake of the antimicrobial agent, or acquiring efflux pumps that will extrude the drugs l horizontal transfer of resistance genes between strains and species by transformation, transduction or conjugation. In Streptococcus, Meningococcus and other related microorganisms, antibiotic resistance may occur via DNA transformation. Horizontal gene transfer has been observed frequently in Acinetobacter sp., whereas gene amplification is responsible for sulphonamide and trimethoprim resistance.

Global and national policies – responding to antimicrobial resistance—

The World Health Organization (WHO), Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE), European Union (EU), European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), and governments across the globe are committed to develop guidelines and policies to regulate and to monitor the use of antibiotics in food animals and subsequent development of antibiotic resistance (Walia et al., 2019). The WHO has endorsed the ‘One Health approach’ to address this problem globally through an alliance between WHO, FAO and OIE referred as ‘Tripartite Alliance’ (WHO, 2015). In partnership with its tripartite partners, the WHO published the ‘Global Action Plan (GAP) on antimicrobial resistance’ in 2015 (WHO, 2015). The GAP focuses on the set of strategies including improving sanitation, cleanliness, hygiene and proper awareness about AMR, strengthening surveillance, promoting research, reducing infection incidence and optimizing the use of antibiotics along with improved interventions (Walia et al., 2019). It further provides strategic guidance to minimize the risk of animal food safety with associated hazards and zoonosis (WHO, 2015). The WHO has also ranked antibiotics or antimicrobials as per importance to human medicine, with the aim to restrict the use of antibiotics or antimicrobials in foodproducing animals and specially reserve certain classes of drugs for human use (Collignon et al., 2016). The FAO has also launched its ‘AMR Strategy’ to implement the WHO’s GAP in the animal food and agricultural sectors (FAO, 2016). The OIE has stressed on the implementation of veterinary legislation and regulations approving judicial use of ‘Veterinary Critically Important Antimicrobial Agents, Veterinary Highly Important Antimicrobial Agents and Veterinary Important Antimicrobial Agents’ (OIE 2015, 2016). As one of the countries most affected by AMR, India is now taking appropriate steps to address the growing problem of drug resistance by judicial use of antibiotics both in the case of humans and animals. In 2007, the Bureau of Indian Standards of Poultry Feed recommended stopping the use of antimicrobials or antibiotics with systemic action as antibiotic growth promoters in a feed (BIS, 2007). There has been legislation recently on antibiotic residues, toxins and other contaminants in different food products including meat and meat products (Table 2) promulgated by Food Safety and Standard Authority of India in December 2018 (FSSAI, 2018). In 2012, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare released the National Policy for Containment of Antimicrobial Resistance under the aegis of the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC). The objectives of this program were to – establish a laboratory-based AMR surveillance system of 30 network laboratories; generate quality data on AMR for microbial pathogens of public health as well as zoonotic importance; strengthen the ways for infection control guidelines and practices, and promote rational use of antibiotics; and generate awareness about the use of antibiotics in both healthcare providers and in the community (DGHS, 2011). The 2012 Chennai Declaration-A Roadmap to Tackle the Challenge of Antimicrobial Resistance, was developed at the Joint Meeting of Medical Societies in India, organized as a pre-conference symposium of the 2nd Annual Conference of the Clinical Infectious Disease Society (CIDSCON) on 24th August, 2012. The following needs, as per CIDSCON, were outlined (Ghafur et al., 2013) – 1) to evaluate the extent of antibiotic usage in the veterinary practice and the indications of use (prophylaxis, treatment, or growth promoter) 2) to regulate antibiotic usage in the veterinary practice 3) to ascertain and monitor the prevalence of resistant bacteria, especially important zoonotic food-borne bacteria in animals and food of animal origin to quantify the rate of transfer of medically relevant resistance genes and resistant bacteria from animals to humans 4) to regulate the monitoring of residues of antibiotics in the food of animal origin and study the role of antibiotic residues in food towards development of resistance 5) to formulate/implement proper regulations and protocol for the observance of withholding or withdrawal periods between the use of antibiotics and food animal slaughter or milking to avoid residues of antibiotics in meat and milk. In January 2012, the Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO) introduced a new norm that specifies the withdrawal period, or the time frame for poultry, livestock and marine products to be kept off antimicrobials or antibiotics before they enter the food chain. According to the new norms that specify the withdrawal period, milk and egg products will have to be off antibiotics for seven days before they can enter the food chain. In case of poultry and food-producing animal, the corresponding period will be 28 days. In 2014, the Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries (DAHDF) issued a circular to its officials across India, advising them to use antibiotics judiciously for treatment of all foodproducing animals and animal feeding. It also advised that the use of all antibiotics and hormones in animal feed should be stopped immediately. In 2015, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FAAAI) issued guidelines to limit the use of antibiotics as well as veterinary drugs in meat and meat products. It is proposed that feed for meatproducing animals or birds should not include meat, blood meal and bone tissues except milk and milk products. The FSSAI has also suggested different slaughterhouse for poultry and livestock animals and there should be a slaughter of only those animals that are allowed as per the Food Safety and Standards (Food Product Standards and Food Additives) regulations, 2011 (FSSAI, 2015). The FSSAI in November 2017 has invited comments from all stakeholders and the general public to set a maximum tolerance limit of antibiotics and veterinary drugs in all edible tissues from food-producing animals. The detail of the above limits has been illustrated in Table 2 for reference purposes. he NAP-AMR further promotes the One Health perspective of integrating human and animal health sectors. In 2017, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) in collaboration with the Indian Council of Agriculture Research (ICAR) has initiated a project to develop standard operating procedures for antimicrobial susceptibility testing for veterinary microbiology laboratories and identify available capacities and the gap areas. The project envisages developing capacity in AMR in the veterinary sector for providing important linkages with human sector (Walia et al., 2019). In June 2017, the ICMR organized a meeting with all the relevant stakeholders to discuss the possibility of reserving a few classes of drugs for human use. Following observations were made from the above meeting: l‘Critically important’ or ‘last line’ antibiotics for humans (WHO, 2017) vizpolymyxins, glycopeptides, fluoroquinolones and fourth- and fifth-generation cephalosporins should not be used for treatment in foodproducing animals. l Penicillin, tetracyclines, cephalosporins, quinolones, sulphonamides, and aminoglycosides should be exclusively used for the treatment of animals. Glycopeptides and carbapenems are used in pets. l Diagnostic methods for the detection of AMR in animals need to be standardized and uniformity should be maintained throughout all the veterinary laboratories across the country. l Research should be carried out to study the spread of AMR between animals, humans and fisheries. l Action points were suggested for urgent implementation of antibiotics used in food animals with the help of DAHDF, ICAR and Drug Controller General of India (DCGI).

Recommendations

In order to conserve the effectiveness of antimicrobials in human and animals, the following recommendations can be made: Educate farmers, veterinarians, and consumers on the dangers of AMR There is still a lack of awareness about AMR among producers and consumers. Education and raising awareness through extension education conducted by veterinary and agricultural universities or through regular and social media can play a role in reducing the use of antimicrobials or antibiotics in animals and demand for antibiotic-free products. Phase-out the sub-therapeutic use of antibiotics in animals Sub-therapeutic use of antibiotics should be phased out gradually over time to avoid any unintended negative effects on animal health. The total use of antimicrobials or antibiotics along with total production costs should be monitored. This approach has great potential to reduce overall antibiotic or antimicrobial use and resistance. Nationwide surveillance and monitoring system to track veterinary antibiotic use, resistance, and residues Tracking veterinary antibiotic use, residues, and resistance has not been done systematically in India. To fill this knowledge gap, a surveillance system should be initiated, collecting qualitative and quantitative information over time. Scientists from veterinary universities, ICAR, representative from ministry and surveillance experts should monitor the surveillance system. Developing new antibiotics and diagnostic tests As antibiotic or antimicrobial resistance develops as part of a natural evolution process, it can be significantly reduced but cannot be stopped completely. Therefore, the development of new antimicrobials or antibiotics will always be essential to keep up with resistant bacteria as well as new diagnostic tests to track antibiotic resistance.

CONCLUSION

Food safety is the basic demand of consumers. Antimicrobial residues in foods of animal origin are worrying because of the toxicological risk to consumers and the risk of non-compliance with the regulatory requirements for trade. Meat industry in developing countries must offer products that are competitive in terms of quality and quantity to enter into the globalised international market. A well-defined quality management system for the production of safe foods of animal origin is to be established for the survival and development of meat, poultry and dairy industry. Thus, the implementation of various quality control programmes will enhance the production of safe food and will quash the harmful effects of antimicrobial residues in foods of animal origin. The Indian National Action Plan for AMR is a well-articulated comprehensive plan, which addresses all the important regulatory issues and appropriate guidelines related to antibiotic or antimicrobial use as per the “One Health Approach.” However, a separate funding allocation with strategic coordination between central and state governments is needed for its effective implementation and a big cohesive work plan and push is needed by all stakeholders. A multisectoral and multidisciplinary approach with combined efforts and supervision with sound monitoring system is the need of the hour. Government and private sectors, veterinarians along with food industries especially foods of animal origin related to food production and food chain, and pharmaceutical industries have a crucial role to design the strategies and tackle the issues of AMR to halt its progress where antibiotic residues in the meat and meat products especially having big role. Therefore, in the comprehensive program to tackle AMR, this aspect of genesis of antibiotic resistance through antibiotic residues within muscles, requires a thorough understanding and must be included in the study of tackling AMR. Once implemented, proper surveillance by the authorities in monitoring and evaluation of all the objectives including the assessing of antibiotic residue levels with minimization of possible antibiotic contamination in animal food chain would finally give results in lower the resistance burden in humans and animals particularly in reference to India.

Antibiotic Use in Food Animals- India overview