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5th Seminar "ARG in bioaerosols"

Reducing the use of antibiotics in animal production: is it worth the effort? Experience and lessons learned from the poultry industry in Québec

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In a global effort to reduce the importance of antimicrobial resistance (AR), the Chicken Farmers of Canada have started implementing, in May 2014, its Responsible Antimicrobial use (AMU) Strategy that aimed at gradually eliminating the preventive use of medically important antibiotics for humans in poultry production. Since the implementation of this strategy is yet to be completed, little is known about its real impact on the presence of AR genes (ARG) in poultry production. A study conducted in Québec showed that eliminating the use of antibiotics in commercial broiler chicken flocks over a 15-month period was not sufficient to reduce the abundance of many ARG, whereas limiting the use of antibiotics in these flocks for treatment purposes only over a period of six years was able to significantly reduce the abundance of many ARG in the surveyed flocks.