Veal Quality Assurance Adds Antibiotic Stewardship Training to Program

Content to be featured in an August 5, 2021 at 11:00AM Central, educational webinar hosted by the Dairy Calf and Heifer Association; eligible for continuing education by the American Association of Veterinary State Boards

Antibiotic use is vital to the health and welfare of food producing animals. However, improper antibiotic use may contribute to antibiotic resistant infections in humans. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention states on their website that any time antibiotics are used, in people and animals, they can contribute to the development of antibiotic resistance.

Appropriate administration of antibiotics is important for young dairy calves, especially those raised for veal, as they face early-life challenges, such as unknown colostrum management practices on the dairy farm of origin, long-distance transport, and pathogen exposure as they enter different environments before arriving to the veal grower.

To elevate educational training and resources provided to veal growers and industry representatives on this important topic, the Veal Quality Assurance (VQA) program has partnered with The Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine to develop educational materials to guide treatment decisions to safeguard calf health and welfare and improve antibiotic stewardship.

Antibiotic Stewardship – Ensuring judicious antibiotic use and mitigating the impact of antibiotic resistance in veal calves — is the focus of a three-part training program added to the current VQA certification process.  VQA is funded by the Beef Checkoff and managed by the North American Meat Institute, a contractor to the Beef Board.

Antibiotic use in food animals is important to help treat bacterial diseases in animals. Additionally, to slow the spread of antibiotic resistance, antibiotics should only be used when necessary, underscoring the significance of careful stewardship of antibiotic resources. While the milk-fed/grain-fed veal industry has not experienced any volatile residue violations in recent years, as reported by USDA; antibiotic stewardship is more encompassing and aimed at overall antibiotic use throughout the growing period to mitigate the potential spread of antibiotic resistance.

“While the veal industry has had a good track record on residue avoidance, continuous improvement is the goal,” said Greg Habing, DVM and Associate Professor, College of Veterinary Medicine, The Ohio State University. “Research we’ve conducted on veal farms indicates even with veterinary oversight, there is still opportunity to reduce unnecessary antibiotic use. This program is aimed at changing that.”

The three modules covered in the Antimicrobial Stewardship Training include:

• Module 1 – Understanding Antibiotics and Antibiotic Resistance
• Module 2 – Enhancing Clinical Evaluation
• Module 3 –Applying Decision-tree Protocols

The modules use a variety of scenarios to provide valuable, relevant and practical instructions to make accurate health assessments. Additionally, growers will have enhanced understanding for what antibiotic resistance means, the differences between bacteria and a virus, and when antibiotic treatment is needed and when it is not. The program content was created by Greg Habing, DVM, PhD, Martey Masterson, DVM and Jessica Pempek, PhD, all from The Ohio State University.

“Responsible antibiotic use is essential to prevent emergence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, protect people and animals from adverse drug effects, and avoid antibiotic residue in animal products,” said Jessica Pempek, PhD, Assistant Professor and Animal Welfare Specialist at The Ohio State University.

“The benefits of antibiotic stewardship include better health outcomes, improved animal welfare, enhanced food safety and stemming the growth of antibiotic resistance. Additionally, stewardship may help lower treatment costs and lower production losses,” according to Pempek.

To access these Antibiotic Stewardship in Veal Calves training materials contact VQA program manager, DonnaM@LookEast.com. Additional information on Veal Quality Assurance can be found online at www.veal.org

Every beef and veal farmer, and every beef or veal importer, contributes one dollar per head to a fund called the National Beef Checkoff, which is used to support the Veal Quality Assurance Program. This program is administered by the North American Meat Institute, a contractor to the beef checkoff.

More information about the Veal Quality Assurance program can be found at the website – Veal.org