US Poultry & Egg Association (USPOULTRY) has released an updated report quantifying on-farm antibiotic use and demonstrating the industry’s commitment to antibiotic stewardship and disease prevention.
USPOULTRY says that as part of the industry’s commitment to transparency and sustainability within a safe food supply, it aims to balance the responsible use of antibiotics “medically important” to human health with keeping poultry flocks healthy.
Key findings for each sector:
Broilers
The report noted several key changes in antibiotic usage in broiler chickens from 2013 to 2023:
- Broiler chickens receiving antibiotics in the hatchery decreased from 90% in 2013 to less than 1% in 2023.
- Medically important in-feed antibiotic use in broiler chickens decreased substantially. There has been no in-feed tetracycline use since 2019, and virginiamycin use has decreased by about 99% over the 11-year period.
- Medically important water-soluble antibiotic use in broiler chickens decreased substantially from 2013 to 2017 and has increased slightly from 2017 to 2023. Increases were typically due to increased disease incidence, also seen in other countries, from 2019 to 2023:
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- Penicillin use decreased by 64% from 2013 to 2019 but has increased by 60% from 2019 to 2023 due to increased gangrenous dermatitis incidence. Overall, penicillin use decreased 42% from 2013 to 2023.
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- Lincomycin use decreased by 66% from 2013 to 2020 but has increased by 11% from 2020 to 2023 due to increased gangrenous dermatitis incidence. Overall, lincomycin use decreased by 62% from 2013 to 2023.
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- Tetracycline use decreased by 70% since 2013.
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- Sulfonamide use decreased by 82% since 2013.
Turkeys
The report also noted key changes in antibiotic usage in turkeys from 2013 to 2023:
- Turkeys receiving antibiotics in the hatchery decreased from 97% in 2013 to approximately 40% in 2023.
- Hatchery gentamicin use decreased by approximately 48% from 2013 to 2023.
- Medically important in-feed antibiotic use in turkeys decreased substantially. In-feed tetracycline use decreased by more than 58% over the 11-year period.
- Medically important water-soluble antibiotic use in turkeys decreased substantially from 2013 to 2019 and then stabilized or increased from 2019 to 2023. Increases were typically due to increased disease incidence, also seen in other countries, from 2019 to 2023:
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- Penicillin use decreased by almost 53% since 2013.
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- Lincomycin use decreased by 58% from 2013 to 2019 but increased substantially from 2020 to 2023 due to increased gangrenous dermatitis incidence and a penicillin shortage.
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- Neomycin use decreased by 53% since 2013.
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- Tetracycline use decreased 19% overall from 2013 to 2023, but there was an increase from 2019 to 2023, primarily due to increases in colibacillosis and secondary infections following avian metapneumovirus exposure.
Layers
Layers typically begin laying eggs around 20 weeks of age and end around 80 to 100 weeks of age.
Table-egg production is similar to milk production — the product for human consumption is produced daily. Most antibiotics that could be administered to layers have withdrawal periods that would prevent all eggs produced during this period from entering the food supply. This is one reason why few antibiotics are used in table-egg production in the US.
Below are the key findings noted in the report for antibiotic usage in layers from 2016 to 2023:
- All chicks in the dataset received gentamicin in the hatchery (day 1 of age).
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- In the US, most chicks purchased by egg companies are sourced from hatcheries that are owned and operated by genetics companies.
- The primary medically important antibiotic used in layer hens for treatment and control of disease in this dataset was chlortetracycline (CTC), used partly because it has a zero-day withdrawal, meaning there is no loss of eggs during the treatment period.
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- CTC was only administered via the feed in pullets (day 2 through 16 to 18 weeks of age) and layers.
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- Over 95% of CTC was used in the layers to treat disease. No pullets in the dataset were given CTC in the feed during 2022 or 2023.
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- Less than 0.1% of total hen-days were exposed to CTC.
Report history
The report represents an 11-year dataset collected from 2013 to 2023 for US broiler chickens and turkeys and an 8-year dataset from 2016 to 2023 for layers.
Randall Singer, DVM, PhD, MPVM, founder of Mindwalk Consulting Group, LLC and professor of epidemiology at the University of Minnesota, directed the research for the report with funding from USPOULTRY.
In December 2023, USPOULTRY released a report, whose research was also directed by Singer, covering antibiotic use in poultry from 2013 to 2022. That same year, Singer published three peer-reviewed manuscripts that covered the data collected for that report from broiler chickens, turkeys and layers.
“This research emphasizes the continued focus on the judicious use of antibiotics in the poultry industry,” remarked Nath Morris, USPOULTRY president.
According to USPOULTRY, collecting these data will assist the poultry industry as it aims to improve antibiotic stewardship and document the burden of flock illness and reasons for on-farm, medically important antibiotic usage.
Given several key differences among broiler chickens, turkeys and layers — particularly differences in weight, life span, susceptibility to lifetime illness and the number of effective medical treatments available — USPOULTRY advised that these data should neither be combined nor compared between poultry types.
Study details can be found at https://mindwalkconsultinggroup.com/. The updated infographic report can be viewed here.
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