Last week we expressed hope that new McDonald’s CEO Steve Easterbrook would do more than pay lip service to concerns about over-use of medically important antibiotics in farm animals, and today there appears to be some not-bad news coming out of the Golden Arches. The fast food mega-chain says it will only source chickens raised without the use of antibiotics that are important to humans and will offer milk that doesn’t contain artificial growth hormone.
“Our customers want food that they feel great about eating,” explains McDonald’s U.S President Mike Andres in a statement, “all the way from the farm to the restaurant – and these moves take a step toward better delivering on those expectations.”
Antibiotics are commonly added to animal feed, primarily for their growth-promoting effects. While this is good for farmers, scientists and public health advocates have long warned that over-use of antibiotics — especially those deemed medically important to humans — can engender the development and spread of drug-resistant pathogens.
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Perdue aint gonna be happy with this!
ReplyDeleteI don't have to hug them to get it do I?
ReplyDelete2:11
ReplyDeletePerdue is the one with anti-biotic free chickens!
2:11 Why? They are antibiotic free as well. Hell, most, if not all, are. "Anti-Biotic Free" is a gimmick for putting an extra charge on feed. Like "Organic" and "Non GMO". I really like finding the "Non-GMO" bags of grain when there's not even a GMO for that specific grain. Oh well, I will stay educated as a grower, and allow the public to be misinformed and taken advantage of by creative marketing.
ReplyDeletePerdue, Allen's and Tyson's have already shifted away from using antibotics.
ReplyDeleteMc nuggets ain't chicken
ReplyDeleteSales pitch. Chicken doesn't have those antibiotics in the feed nor hormones.
ReplyDeleteJust a sales pitch, is all. KFC could make the same claim a year ago.