U.S – The Reagan-Udall Foundation for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has taken a significant step towards combatting antimicrobial resistance (AMR) by publishing a new report titled “Establishing a Draft Framework for a Public-Private Partnership to Support the Tracking of Antimicrobial Use in Food-Producing Animals.”
The report outlines efforts to explore a public-private partnership aimed at improving the tracking of antimicrobial use (AMU) in food-producing animals.
AMR is a growing global threat that demands action in both new product research and development, as well as greater stewardship of AMU in human and animal health.
Currently, there is no national data repository or infrastructure to collect antimicrobial use data in animals, making it challenging to characterize the relationship between AMU and AMR in food-producing animals.
In response to this critical issue, the FDA’s Center for Veterinary Medicine (CVM) initiated discussions with the Reagan-Udall Foundation, requesting their assistance in exploring the feasibility of creating a public-private partnership to develop an AMU data repository.
The report presents the outcome of these discussions, which focused on creating a potential framework for the public-private partnership.
Stakeholders from industry groups and veterinary professional associations participated in the dialogue, contributing insights on organizational structure, data standardization, public reporting, and data analysis.
Several key themes emerged from the discussions, shedding light on the complexities of tracking AMU in food-producing animals.
Participants highlighted that antimicrobial sales and distribution data are not synonymous with AMU data. Understanding AMU requires considering factors such as the number, size, species, and indications for which the antimicrobials are used.
The discussion revealed that collecting standardized data across different species and routes of administration poses significant challenges. Each food-producing species or commodity requires unique considerations, and direct comparisons between species should be avoided.
According to the participants, ensuring clear data access and privacy protection is crucial to building and maintaining mutual trust among public and private partners in the proposed partnership.
The Reagan-Udall Foundation will use these key themes to formulate principles for the potential public-private partnership.
By establishing an AMU data repository, this partnership aims to bridge the current information gap and provide valuable insights into the relationship between AMU and AMR in food-producing animals.
The ultimate goal is to inform strategies for more effective antimicrobial stewardship and combat the growing threat of antimicrobial resistance in both human and animal health.
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