President Obama directed the government to support “the emerging market for meat that has been produced according to responsible antibiotic-use policies” by serving the meat in federal cafeterias and, by 2020, giving routine preference to vendors selling the meat. The direction, in a memo signed by Obama, dovetails with administration efforts to prevent the development of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, which are a threat to human health. An estimated 23,000 Americans die annually from infections of resistant bacteria.
The first step under the memo is for federal agencies to include an option in food contracts for suppliers to provide beef, pork and chicken from farms that do not use medically important antibiotics as a growth promotant. “By 2020, each agency shall develop and implement a strategy that creates a preference for awarding contracts to vendors that offer, as an option, meat and poultry produced according to responsible antibiotic-use policies for sale in domestic Federal cafeterias to civilian Federal employees and visitors, to the extent such an option is available and cost effective,” said the memo.
The White House announcement on a federal preference for meat produced with fewer antibiotics follows the May 7 announcement by an alliance of big school districts and Pew Charitable Trusts of a program to verify that chicken is produced with reduced amounts of the antimicrobials. The Certified Responsible Antibiotic Use designation is intended to create a market for the meat among institutional buyers, such as schools and hospitals. USDA has certified a Tyson Foods facility in Pennsylvania as meeting the requirements.