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MARK LITTLE: Feeding for health, combating antimicrobial resistance
FEEDING FOR HEALTH, COMBATING ANTIMICROBIAL RESISTANCE
THOMAS HENRY FOUNDATION
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MARK LITTLE
markwlittle@me.com
Antibiotics are substances that either kill or inhibit the growth of bacteria and are used in livestock production to treat and prevent disease, ensuring the health and welfare of animals while controlling zoonotic diseases and ensuring safe food for humans. The World Health Organisation describes antibiotic resistance as one of the most significant threats to health and food security at present. The misuse and overuse of antibiotics accelerates the development of antibiotic resistance therefore, it is important to use antibiotics only when necessary. Keeping animals healthy is an important strategy in the fight against antibiotic resistance as healthy animals do not need antibiotic treatment. However, further investigation is needed to fully define the links between nutrition and health, a statement which is also made in the UK’s national action plan to tackle antimicrobial resistance. My study tour explored nutritional products and solutions currently used for humans and other species, along with completely novel nutritional solutions, to investigate if they have applications in ruminants to increase their health, preventing the use of antibiotics. In addition to visiting companies that develop nutritional products, I visited farms to assess the role nutrition plays in farm management and to experience the practical application of these products in ‘real life’ on-farm situations. This involved travel to Norway and the Netherlands to experience how their farms are so successful in achieving some of the lowest antibiotic usage in food producing animals in the world. My travels to the USA explored how they have changed from producing food heavily reliant on antibiotics to being focused on meeting the growing consumer pressure on farmers and processors to provide food produced without antibiotics. Travelling to France highlighted that agriculture is of the upmost importance and how they take great pride in having top quality and locally sourced food with impeccable standards. Here, I visited companies that manufacture novel in-feed health products and experiences how the farmers who use them, have cleverly increased the value of their farm produce. There are many companies working on nutritional products to improve animal health. However, my findings are that these products do not simply replace antibiotics but can help reduce the need to use antibiotics through methods such as increasing cattle immunity. Products such as probiotics, prebiotics, essential oils, plant extracts, plant fibres, bacteriophages and quorum sensing products have potential positive effects on cattle health, but none of these are a ‘silver bullet’ solution. More importantly, I found that animal health is an interconnected relationship involving genetics, farm management, vaccination and nutrition; therefore a holistic view must be taken. Although nutrition is part of the solution, the key is to understand the farm and identify the ‘weakest link’ in this relationship to make a change that will result in the largest improvement in herd health.
The Thomas Henry Foundation
The Thomas Henry Foundation was created under the terms of the will dated 28th May 1847 of Thomas Henry, Downpatrick, Northern Ireland. The principal objective of the foundation is the advancement and promotion of Agricultural Science through the provision of Bursaries and Scholarships to suitable candidates from Northern Ireland. The Foundation also provides financial assistance which enables representatives from Northern Ireland to attend conferences of the Royal Agricultural Society of the British Commonwealth held in different parts of the world. The Foundation also awards an annual bursary to support a student at Greenmount Agricultural College in County Antrim.
If you live in Northern Ireland and are interested in applying for a Nuffield Farming Scholarship funded by the Thomas Henry Foundation application forms can be obtained from the address below.
Colonel M J Vacher OBE FCMI, Nuffield Farming Scholarship Trust, Southill Farmhouse, Staple Fitzpaine, Taunton, Somerset, TA3 5SH O: 01460 234012 | M: 07788 138372 | E: director@nuffieldscholar.org www.nuffieldscholar.org
