Map of life expectancy at birth from Global Education Project.

Thursday, December 12, 2013

Sorry FDA, not good enough


As you probably already know or would soon even if you hadn't visited here, the FDA has finally issued regulations on feeding antibiotics to livestock. Yes, in three years "farmers" (read: owners of buildings stuffed full of pigs and cows confined in small spaces, gorging on corn and garbage, and discharging millions of gallons of shit into lagoons) won't be able to go to the local feedstore and buy antibiotics by the 80 pound bag.

No, they'll need a prescription from a veterinarian based on the assertion that they're "preventing disease." Big whoop. They'll get one.

Some consumer health advocates were skeptical that the new rules would reduce the amount of antibiotics consumed by animals. They say that a loophole will allow animal producers to keep using the same low doses of antibiotics by contending they are needed to keep animals from getting sick, and evading the new ban on use for growth promotion.

Yep, that will happen. 

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