The Future of Antimicrobial Development – An Association View
Richard Carnevale, Animal Health Institute
Antimicrobials for veterinary medicine and food animal production have been an important product line in the animal health industry for many years. Concerns that use of antimicrobials in food animals might negatively impact human health have been raised since the 1970’s when the famous Swann report suggested that penicillins and tetracyclines in feed could contribute to the transfer of antimicrobial resistance to humans. More recently, renewed efforts by those against the use of antimicrobials in production agriculture have been mounted to eliminate many important uses including critical therapeutic indications. This talk will discuss the current climate and factors influencing the industry in their research and development of new antimicrobials, some of the challenges facing the industry and how it has responded, and what the future may hold for animal health companies that invest in new product development.