[USCC] Fwd: "The Potential Role of CAFOs in Infectious Disease Epidemics and Antibiotic Resistance"

[Jim McNelly]

>
>*   "The Potential Role of CAFOs in Infectious 
>Disease Epidemics and Antibiotic Resistance" is 
>the title of an article published November 14, 
>2006 in the online before print section of 
>Environmental Health Perspectives, a publication 
>of the HHS NIH National Institute of 
>Environmental Health Sciences, by individuals 
>with The University Hygienic Laboratory, Iowa 
>City, Iowa, National Veterinary Institute, 
>Uppsala, Sweden, Institute for Agriculture and 
>Trade Policy, Minneapolis, Minnesota, Iowa State 
>University, Ames and The University of Iowa, 
>Iowa City - The abstract states " ... The 
>industrialization of livestock production and 
>the widespread use of non-therapeutic 
>antimicrobial growth promotants has intensified 
>the risk for the emergence of new, more 
>virulent, or more resistant microorganisms. 
>These have reduced the effectiveness of several 
>classes of antibiotics for treating infections 
>in humans and livestock. Recent outbreaks of 
>virulent strains of influenza have arisen from 
>swine and poultry raised in close proximity. 
>This Working Group considered the state of the 
>science around these issues and concurred with 
>the World Health Organization call for a 
>phasing-out of the use of antimicrobial growth 
>promotants for livestock and fish production. We 
>also agree that all therapeutic antimicrobial 
>agents should be available by prescription only 
>for both human and veterinary use. Concern about 
>the risk of an influenza pandemic leads us to 
>recommend that regulations be promulgated to 
>restrict the co-location of swine and poultry 
>CAFOs on the same site and to set appropriate 
>separation distances ..." - The authors were 
>participants in a workgroup that was part of a 
>conference and workshop sponsored by a grant 
>from the National Institute of Environmental 
>Health Sciences, titled “Environmental Health 
>Impacts of CAFOs: Anticipating Hazards – 
>Searching for Solutions" that was held March 29 
>through 31, 2004 in Iowa City, Iowa, information 
>about which is posted at 
><http://www.ehsrc.uiowa.edu/EHSRCnews/EHSRC_Update_2-4_Fall2003.pdf>http://www.ehsrc.uiowa.edu/EHSRCnews/EHSRC_Update_2-4_Fall2003.pdf 
>- The abstract is posted at 
><http://www.ehponline.org/docs/2006/8837/abstract.html>http://www.ehponline.org/docs/2006/8837/abstract.html 
>specifically at 
><http://www.ehponline.org/docs/2006/8837/abstract.pdf>http://www.ehponline.org/docs/2006/8837/abstract.pdf 
>- The text of the full 21 page paper is posted 
>at 
><http://www.ehponline.org/members/2006/8837/8837.pdf>http://www.ehponline.org/members/2006/8837/8837.pdf 
>- Reprint requests may be directed to one of the 
>authors, Peter Thorne, Professor, College of 
>Public Health, The University of Iowa at 319 335 
>4216; fax: 319 335 4006; e-mail: 
><mailto:Peter-Thorne at UIowa.edu>Peter-Thorne at UIowa.edu
>
>http://www.ehponline.org/docs/2006/8837/abstract.html 
>specifically at http://www.ehponline.org/docs/2006/8837/abstract.pdf
>
>National Institutes of Health
>
>U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
>
>ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH PERSPECTIVES
>ehponline.org
>
>The Potential Role of CAFOs in Infectious 
>Disease Epidemics and Antibiotic Resistance
>
>Mary J. Gilchrist, Christina Greko, David B. 
>Wallinga, George W. Beran, David G. Riley and Peter S. Thorne
>
>doi:10.1289/ehp.8837 (available at http://dx.doi.org/)
>
>Online 14 November 2006
>
>The Potential Role of CAFOs in Infectious 
>Disease Epidemics and Antibiotic Resistance
>
>Workgroup Report: “Environmental Health Impacts 
>of CAFOs: Anticipating Hazards – Searching for 
>Solutions.” March 29-31, 2004, Iowa City, Iowa
>
>Members
>
>Mary J. Gilchrist, The University Hygienic 
>Laboratory, Iowa City, IA (Co-Chair)
>Christina Greko, National Veterinary Institute, Uppsala, Sweden (Co-Chair)
>David B. Wallinga, Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, Minneapolis, MN
>George W. Beran, Iowa State University, Ames, IA
>David G. Riley, The University of Iowa , Iowa City, IA
>Peter S. Thorne, The University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA
>
>Send page proofs to: Peter S. Thorne, Professor, 
>College of Public Health, The University of 
>Iowa, 100 Oakdale Campus, IREH, Iowa City, IA 
>52242-5000. TEL: (319) 335-4216. FAX: (319) 
>335-4006. EMAIL: peter-thorne at uiowa.edu
>
>Running Title: CAFOs, Infectious Disease & Antibiotic Resistance
>
>Key Words: Antibiotic resistance, influenza, 
>manure lagoon, poultry, swine, zoonotic disease
>
>Acknowledgments: This workgroup was part of a 
>conference and workshop sponsored by a grant 
>from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences: P30 ES05605-14S.
>
>Abbreviations/Definitions:
>
>CAFO - Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation
>MRSA - Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus
>WHO – World Health Organization
>
>Manuscript Outline
>
>Abstract
>Background & Recent Developments
>Antibiotic Resistance
>State of Science
>Risk Assessment
>Vaccines
>Policy Initiatives
>Infectious Diseases
>Influenza
>Waterborne Disease
>Animal Feed Containing Animal Byproducts
>Meat for Human Consumption
>Workshop Recommendations
>Priority Research Needs
>References
>
>Abstract
>
>The industrialization of livestock production 
>and the widespread use of non-therapeutic 
>antimicrobial growth promotants has intensified 
>the risk for the emergence of new, more 
>virulent, or more resistant microorganisms. 
>These have reduced the effectiveness of several 
>classes of antibiotics for treating infections 
>in humans and livestock. Recent outbreaks of 
>virulent strains of influenza have arisen from 
>swine and poultry raised in close proximity. 
>This Working Group considered the state of the 
>science around these issues and concurred with 
>the World Health Organization call for a 
>phasing-out of the use of antimicrobial growth 
>promotants for livestock and fish production. We 
>also agree that all therapeutic antimicrobial 
>agents should be available by prescription only 
>for both human and veterinary use. Concern about 
>the risk of an influenza pandemic leads us to 
>recommend that regulations be promulgated to 
>restrict the co-location of swine and poultry 
>CAFOs on the same site and to set appropriate separation distances.
>
>end
>
>The text of the full 21 page paper, titled "The 
>Potential Role of CAFOs in Infectious Disease 
>Epidemics and Antibiotic Resistance" is posted 
>at http://www.ehponline.org/members/2006/8837/8837.pdf
>
>************
>
>http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/asection/la-na-livestock17nov17,1,3670425.story?coll=la-news-a_section
>
>Foul state of affairs found in feedlots; Factory 
>farms are harmful to the public and the environment, researchers report.
>
>By Marla Cone
>Times Staff Writer
>
>November 17, 2006
>
>Growing so large that they are now called 
>factory farms, livestock feedlots are poorly 
>regulated, pose health and ecological dangers 
>and are responsible for deteriorating quality of 
>life in America's and Europe's farm regions, 
>according to a series of scientific studies published this week.
>
>Feedlots are contaminating water supplies with 
>pathogens and chemicals, and polluting the air 
>with foul-smelling compounds that can cause 
>respiratory problems, but the health of their 
>neighbors goes largely unmonitored, the reports concluded.
>
>The international teams of environmental 
>scientists also warned that the livestock 
>operations were contributing to the rise of 
>antibiotic-resistant germs, and that the 
>proximity of poultry to hogs could hasten the spread of avian flu to humans.
>
>Feedlots are operations in which hundreds — 
>often thousands — of cattle, hogs or poultry are 
>confined, often in very close quarters. About 
>15,500 medium to large livestock feedlots 
>operate in the United States in what is an 
>approximately $80-billion-a-year industry.
>
>Although the reports focused largely on Iowa and 
>North Carolina hog and poultry operations, 
>California has more than 2,000 facilities with 
>at least 300 livestock animals each, half of 
>them with more than 1,000, according to a 2002 
>estimate by the U.S. Environmental Protection 
>Agency. Dairies, most of them in the San Joaquin 
>Valley, dominate the industry in California.
>
>Led by Peter Thorne, director of the University 
>of Iowa's Environmental Health Sciences Research 
>Center, the researchers outlined the need for 
>more stringent regulations and surveillance of water and air near feedlots.
>
>"There was general agreement among all [the 
>scientists] that the industrialization of 
>livestock production over the past three decades 
>has not been accompanied by commensurate 
>modernization of regulations to protect the 
>health of the public or natural, public-trust 
>resources, particularly in the U.S.," wrote 
>Thorne, a professor of toxicology and environmental engineering.
>
>The findings were from a consensus of experts 
>from the United States, Canada and northern 
>Europe who convened in Iowa two years ago for a 
>workshop funded by the federal government to 
>address environmental and health issues related 
>to large livestock operations. Six reports, 
>written by three dozen scientists mostly from 
>the American Midwest and Scandinavia, were 
>published this week in the online version of the 
>scientific journal Environmental Health Perspectives.
>
>Among their recommendations are limits on the 
>population density of animals and mandatory 
>extensive environmental reviews for new 
>feedlots. They also recommended a ban on the use 
>of antibiotics to promote animal growth, and 
>that the drugs be available to farmers only through prescriptions.
>
>In a new area of concern, the scientists said 
>they were worried about the danger of a flu 
>pandemic spread by feedlots with both hogs and 
>poultry, and recommended new regulations to set 
>minimum distances between the two.
>
>Farm industry representatives said they were not 
>familiar with the new reports and could not 
>address specific findings or recommendations. 
>But they said that many environmental 
>improvements had already been made, and that 
>some experts at universities had said the health risks were minor.
>
>"The livestock industry has been under very 
>intense scrutiny over the past 10 years, and as 
>a result, has gone to great lengths and very 
>high expense to try to improve their 
>environmental record, across the board," said 
>Don Parrish, the American Farm Bureau 
>Federation's senior director of regulatory relations.
>
>"We've definitely improved our game over the 
>past 10 years," Parrish said, and most livestock 
>owners "are being very sensitive to their 
>neighbors and doing the best job they can."
>
>Many of the risks come from the sheer volume of 
>manure. Livestock excrete 13 times more waste 
>than humans — 133 million tons per year in the 
>United States — and some individual feedlots 
>produce as much waste as entire cities.
>
>The American Farm Bureau Federation maintains 
>that almost every state regulates the amount of 
>manure applied to the land to protect water supplies.
>
>But the new reports criticized the current techniques.
>
>"Generally accepted livestock waste management 
>practices do not adequately or effectively 
>protect water resources from contamination with 
>excessive nutrients, microbial pathogens and 
>pharmaceuticals present in the waste," the scientists reported.
>
>The number of large livestock operations has 
>surged in the last two decades, and farms with 
>more than 500 hogs now account for 
>three-quarters of the U.S. inventory. In Iowa, 
>the average number of hogs per farm increased 
>from 250 to 1,430 between 1980 and 2000.
>
>California has more than 2,000 dairies, mostly 
>in Tulare and Merced counties, and many have 
>thousands of cows each. But the health risks to 
>the dairy workers and their neighbors have gone 
>unstudied, said Frank Mitloehner, director of 
>the UC Davis Agricultural Air Emissions Center, 
>who was not involved in the new reports.
>
>UC Davis is launching a five-year study, led by 
>Mitloehner, at dairies in Tulare and Merced 
>counties, to examine the threat from air 
>pollutants. Among the air pollutants from 
>feedlots are ammonia; fine particles of manure, 
>feed, soil and bacteria that can lodge in lungs; 
>and endotoxin, which can inflame respiratory 
>tissues and trigger asthma, bronchitis and allergies.
>
>"There is potential for health effects, but in 
>order to find out the intensity of them, we need 
>to conduct these studies," Mitloehner said.
>
>One of the new reports says a serious impact of 
>feedlots "is their disruption of quality of life 
>for neighboring residents," mostly in low-income and nonwhite communities.
>
>"More than an unpleasant odor, the smell can 
>have dramatic consequences for rural communities 
>whose lives are rooted in enjoying the 
>outdoors," says the report, compiled by 
>researchers in Iowa, Illinois and North 
>Carolina. "The highly cherished values of 
>freedom and independence associated with life 
>oriented toward the outdoors gives way to 
>feelings of violation and infringement
. Homes 
>become a barrier against the outdoors that must be escaped."
>
>In water supplies, the biggest problems are 
>nitrates and fecal bacteria, although experts 
>have also recently discovered animal antibiotics 
>and other drugs in waterways. The scientists 
>recommended that private wells, which largely 
>are unregulated, be monitored carefully near the factory farms.
>
>The EPA was sued in 1989 by an environmental 
>group, the Natural Resources Defense Council, 
>for failing to regulate feedlots under the Clean 
>Water Act. Fewer than 40% have permits for 
>discharging pollutants because of EPA exemptions 
>and lax federal and state enforcement, according 
>to a 2003 report by what was then the General Accounting Office.
>
>In June, the Bush administration proposed new 
>regulations that would require feedlots to 
>develop plans for controlling manure and obtain Clean Water Act permits.
>
>marla.cone at latimes.com
>
>
>
>The above information was sent to you by:
>
>Jack Cooper
>
>Food Industry Environmental Network, LLC (FIEN, 
>LLC) - see http://www.fien.com - FIEN, LLC is a 
>regulatory and policy e-mail update service for 
>the agriculture and food industry which is operated as a partnership by:
>
>Jack L. Cooper
>Food Industry Environmental Network, LLC
>33 Falling Creek Court, Silver Spring, Maryland 20904
>Phone: 301 384 8287 --- E- Mail: JLC at fien.com
>and
>Cindy Roberts
>Food Industry Environmental Network, LLC
>1464 Harvard St. NW, Suite 14
>Washington, DC 20009-4610
>Phone: 202 669 6951 --- E-Mail: CAR at fien.com