A federal judge asked the Food and Drug Administration
(FDA) to reexamine its decision to reject citizen calls to restrict the
use of antibiotics in animal feed, court filings showed.
The latest ruling is the second such setback for the FDA over concerns that overuse of antibiotics in animal feed is endangering human health by creating antibiotic-resistant "superbugs".
In March, a federal court ordered the FDA to begin proceedings to withdraw approval for the use of penicillin and tetracyclines in animal feed unless makers of the drugs can produce evidence that their use is safe.
The lawsuit was filed by environmental and public-health groups including The Natural Resources Defense Council, Center for Science in the Public Interest and the Union of Concerned Scientists in the Manhattan federal court.
The plaintiffs argued that using common antibiotics in livestock feed has contributed to the rapid growth of antibiotic-resistant bacteria in both animals and humans.
Two citizen petitions were filed by the plaintiffs in 1999 and 2005 requesting the FDA to begin withdrawal proceedings for all non-therapeutic uses of medically important antibiotics food producing animals.
In response, FDA rejected those two petitions citing the time and expense required to evaluate individual drug safety and to hold formal withdrawal proceedings, if necessary.
Read more: http://www.chicagotribune.com/health/sns-rt-us-fda-antibioticsbre854099-20120604,0,4917408.story
The latest ruling is the second such setback for the FDA over concerns that overuse of antibiotics in animal feed is endangering human health by creating antibiotic-resistant "superbugs".
In March, a federal court ordered the FDA to begin proceedings to withdraw approval for the use of penicillin and tetracyclines in animal feed unless makers of the drugs can produce evidence that their use is safe.
The lawsuit was filed by environmental and public-health groups including The Natural Resources Defense Council, Center for Science in the Public Interest and the Union of Concerned Scientists in the Manhattan federal court.
The plaintiffs argued that using common antibiotics in livestock feed has contributed to the rapid growth of antibiotic-resistant bacteria in both animals and humans.
Two citizen petitions were filed by the plaintiffs in 1999 and 2005 requesting the FDA to begin withdrawal proceedings for all non-therapeutic uses of medically important antibiotics food producing animals.
In response, FDA rejected those two petitions citing the time and expense required to evaluate individual drug safety and to hold formal withdrawal proceedings, if necessary.
Read more: http://www.chicagotribune.com/health/sns-rt-us-fda-antibioticsbre854099-20120604,0,4917408.story
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