Reading Time: 3 minutes Reuters — U.S. health officials on Thursday reported the first case in the country of a patient with an infection resistant to a last-resort antibiotic, and expressed grave concern that the superbug could pose serious danger for routine infections if it spreads. “We risk being in a post-antibiotic world,” said Thomas Frieden, director of the […] Read more
U.S. sees first case of bacteria resistant to last-resort antibiotic
Activists press Olive Garden on antibiotics, worker pay
Reading Time: 2 minutes Los Angeles | Reuters — Dozens of activist groups, emboldened by recent policy shifts at major U.S. restaurants, are demanding Olive Garden owner Darden Restaurants change its food and labour practices. Their sweeping agenda, part of a campaign called “Good Food Now,” includes calls for the nation’s largest full-service restaurant operator to strengthen its antibiotics […] Read more
A+W books further sales growth, shifts bacon sourcing
Reading Time: 2 minutes Canadian burger and root beer chain A+W has logged a 12th straight quarter of same-store sales growth, this time following a shift in pork sourcing for its bacon supply. The Vancouver-based income fund on Tuesday reported gross sales of $243.8 million among the 838 restaurants in its royalty pool for its first quarter ending March […] Read more
Investor group launches campaign to curb antibiotic use in food
Reading Time: 2 minutes Reuters — Fifty-four large investors managing one trillion pounds (C$1.84 trillion) in assets have launched a campaign to curb the use of antibiotics in the meat and poultry used by 10 large U.S. and British restaurant groups. McDonalds and JD Wetherspoon were among those to receive a March 15 letter from institutions including Aviva Investors […] Read more
A+W ups ante on layer hen housing
Reading Time: 3 minutes Having already pledged to source eggs from hens in enriched housing and raised without use of antibiotics, burger chain A+W now plans to get all its eggs from hens in open housing. The Vancouver-based income fund said Wednesday that despite having “no open-barn housing options available” today that meet its antibiotic-free requirement, it plans to […] Read more
Cargill moves to cut antibiotic use in cattle by 20 per cent
Reading Time: 2 minutes Reuters — Cargill, a top U.S. meat processor, is trimming the use of antibiotics in its cattle supply amid concerns among some doctors and consumers about risks to humans from antibiotic-resistant bacteria. The company on Feb. 26 started eliminating 20 per cent of antibiotics deemed important for human medicine and farm animals from its four […] Read more
U.K. review calls for urgent cuts to antibiotic use in livestock
Reading Time: 2 minutes London | Reuters –– Massive use of antibiotics in farming poses a critical threat to global public health and should be reduced dramatically to an internationally-agreed target, according to a British government-commissioned review. Agreeing and implementing a global target for agricultural antibiotic use won’t be easy, the review, led by former Goldman Sachs chief economist […] Read more
Maple Leaf to upgrade stunning process, ‘accelerate’ on sow housing
Reading Time: 3 minutes Pledging to upgrade its hog and poultry stunning processes, speed up its timeline on sow housing and step up its game on facility audits, livestock pain management and reduced antibiotic use, Maple Leaf Foods said Friday it’s now set to carve an animal care agenda into formal company policy. The major Canadian meat processor on […] Read more
New ‘superbug’ gene found in animals, people in China
Reading Time: 2 minutes London | Reuters — A new gene that makes bacteria highly resistant to a last-resort class of antibiotics has been found in people and pigs in China — including in samples of bacteria with epidemic potential, researchers said Wednesday. The discovery was described as “alarming” by scientists, who called for urgent restrictions on the use […] Read more
California adopts tough rules for antibiotic use in livestock
Reading Time: 2 minutes Los Angeles | Reuters — California Governor Jerry Brown on Saturday signed a bill that sets the strictest government standards in the U.S. for the use of antibiotics in livestock production. The move from California, known for its leadership on public health and environmental issues, comes amid growing concern that the overuse of such drugs […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
