Gert van der Hoek
In Memoriam - Editor, Senior Moderator
Denmark cuts the use of antibiotics in livestock by 60%
No negative effects for animal welfare and meat production
Sustainable farming: Get pigs off antibiotics
Frank Aarestrup
Nature 486, 465?466 (28 June 2012) doi:10.1038/486465a
Published online 27 June 2012
Frank Aarestrup explains how he helped Denmark to cut the use of antibiotics in its livestock by 60%, and calls on the rest of the world to follow suit.
Even before Danish farmers cut back on antibiotics, many predicted that the cessation would have a disastrous effect on productivity and the economy. However, in poultry production, it had no negative effects on either the total kilograms of chickens produced per square metre, or the amount of feed used.
In pigs, reducing antibiotics had no negative effects on productivity, number of pigs produced per sow, average daily weight gain or the amount of feed needed to produce a kilogram of meat. In fact, pork production has increased steadily in Denmark as farmers have continued to modernize.
thanks to Maryn McKenna
No negative effects for animal welfare and meat production
Sustainable farming: Get pigs off antibiotics
Frank Aarestrup
Nature 486, 465?466 (28 June 2012) doi:10.1038/486465a
Published online 27 June 2012
Frank Aarestrup explains how he helped Denmark to cut the use of antibiotics in its livestock by 60%, and calls on the rest of the world to follow suit.
Even before Danish farmers cut back on antibiotics, many predicted that the cessation would have a disastrous effect on productivity and the economy. However, in poultry production, it had no negative effects on either the total kilograms of chickens produced per square metre, or the amount of feed used.
In pigs, reducing antibiotics had no negative effects on productivity, number of pigs produced per sow, average daily weight gain or the amount of feed needed to produce a kilogram of meat. In fact, pork production has increased steadily in Denmark as farmers have continued to modernize.
thanks to Maryn McKenna