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White House holds Antibiotic Stewardship Forum

In another step to combat antibiotic resistant bacteria, President Obama has signed a memorandum declaring the role the federal government will have in the responsible use of medically important antibiotics in the meat and poultry supply chain.

“Within 120 days the General Services Administration (GSA) will initiate a process to make meat and poultry produced according to responsible antibiotic use policies available in federal cafeterias managed by the GSA,” said Dr. John Holdren, Assistant to the President for Science and Technology Policy.

Holden says the Presidential Food Service is also committing to serving meats and poultry that have not been treated with hormones or antibiotics.

In other action announced during the White House Forum on Antibiotic Stewardship on Tuesday, June 2, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced changes to the Veterinary Feed Directive (VFD) regulation.

Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Sylvia Burwell says the VFD is an important piece of FDA’s overall strategy to promote the judicious use of medically important antibiotics in food-producing animals.

“Putting antibiotic overuse under the oversight of veterinarians is an important step in combating overuse,” Secretary Burwell said.