F
H2O
T
and Antibiotics
by Ahmed Abbas Mohamed, Director of Research, WET Group, UK
he challenge for the UK and world health professionals to reduce antibiotic usage is no longer one simply confined to the health sector. With the amount of antibiotics in the food chain, livestock and beverage sector the responsibility to help reduce the UK’s usage level by 15 percent by 2024 rests on all of our shoulders. That’s why, when we developed the WET Group water cleansing technology, a key aim was to remove the need for antibiotics. The outcome could be a major step towards reducing our antibiotic use and fighting antibiotic-resistant infection. When we started our collaboration with Bridgwater & Taunton Agricultural College we knew that we could make a large difference to the outcomes for feeding livestock. But it was important to confirm how much. The size and health of the livestock tested was significant and important but, in the grander scheme of things, the long-term implications for removing the need for antibiotics could be much greater. We believe this technology will be in line with the government’s five-year action plan, designed to reduce the UK’s usage level by 15 percent by 2024. We cannot afford to become complacent. Fresh technologies, discipline and alternatives to antibiotics will be needed to reach the target. Many experts believe overuse of antibiotics in livestock production is fueling the problem of antibiotic resistance. The World Health Organisation (WHO) has previously described the problem as approaching “crisis point”, saying that the world is moving to a situation where many infections might soon be untreatable. Recent statistics from the EU estimate that more than 33,000 people die in Europe each year from an antibiotic-resistant infection, including upwards of 2,000 in the UK.
54 | December 2019 - Milling and Grain
The antibiotic problem at its source
The amount of antibiotics in the food chain emanates from the agricultural industry’s need to counteract the effects of pathogens such as Clostridium Perfringens found in water sources like bore holes traditionally given to livestock. Where the pathogen is present, the prescription of antibiotics helps to offset the harm caused in animals, including death, by resulting bacterial growth. Indeed, such is the level of antibiotic use in this manner that the One Health Report 2019 states that farm animals now account for 26 percent of all UK antibiotic use. If the amount of antibiotics given to livestock is reduced, then the amount in the human food chain will see a significant reduction. This could make a major contribution towards efforts to combat the growing threat of antibiotic resistance in the general population. However, with water containing dangerous pathogens such as Clostridium Perfringens being consumed by livestock, farmers are not currently willing to take the risk of going antibiotics free.
Providing a solution
Much work is going into developing solutions to this problem, supporting farmers and the agricultural industry in improving the health and well-being of livestock and lessening the costly need for animal antibiotic prescriptions. The results of a recent research trial conducted at the Agriculture Innovation Centre at Bridgwater & Taunton College, which looked at the potential impact of a creative water technology innovation which protects and enhances, has shown great promise. Providing water for livestock that is clean and free from residual chlorine, dangerous pathogens and bacterial infections, by putting the source water through this technology without the use of chemicals could well be an effective pathway to better animal health outcomes. This could help improve commercial success for farmers