Source: MEATINGPLACE, 9/12/16


The U.K.’s Food Standards Agency has pledged to cut the use of antibiotics on farms after the discovery of drug-resistant E. coli on chicken and pork products sold at supermarkets, according to media reports.

The watchdog agency’s action follows the release of a University of Cambridge study that found superbug strains in one in four supermarket chicken samples. The study was commissioned by the advocacy group Save Our Antibiotics.

Antibiotic-resistant E. coli was detected on 22 of 92 chicken pieces bought from seven major supermarkets. The samples included whole roasting chickens, packs of legs, thighs, drumsticks and diced breast meat, the Huffington Post reported.

The study found that 51 percent of all chicken and pork samples were resistant to the antibiotic trimethoprim, which is often used to treat lower urinary tract infections.

A spokesman for the Food Standards Agency was quoted as saying the government was working with food producers, manufacturers and retailers and would soon publish results of its own tests.

For more stories, go to www.meatingplace.com.