European Antibiotic Awareness Day

Today (18 November) is European Antibiotic Awareness Day (EAAD). On this day attention is sought from people across Europe to think about how antibiotics are used. Europe’s Animal Health Sector represented by IFAH-Europe (International Federation for Animal Health Europe) is an ardent supporter of EPRUMA (European Platform for the Responsible Use of Medicines in Animals) and is one of the founding members of this multi-stakeholder platform. One of its core remits is to advocate for the responsible use of antibiotics in animals, so we can safeguard their use for the future to ensure our animals’ health and welfare.

IFAH-Europe’s Chairman Alejandro Bernal said: “At IFAH-Europe, we believe antibiotics are a precious resource both for animals and people. By using them responsibly today, we will work to help protect their efficacy tomorrow. Responsible veterinarians and farmers have a duty to protect the health and welfare of animals but they need support. This is why we are working with them to ensure that they use antibiotics as little as possible but as much as necessary.”

For Europe’s animal health industry it is essential to ensure the responsible use of antibiotics through monitoring and transparency at the use-phase, as well as through the promotion of education on what responsible use of antibiotic means. This is vital to ensure the continued use of antibiotics in the future to safeguard the health of animals and people alike. Responsible use should be envisaged within the overall context of good biosecurity, appropriate housing, good nutrition, herd health programmes, vaccination programmes, and following the EPRUMA motto in terms of use of medicines in animals: As little as possible, as much as necessary.

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