In Light of Turkey Recall, Slaughter Calls on FDA for Action

Slaughter Leads Lawmakers Asking for Increased Oversight of Antibiotics in Agriculture

Rochester, NY -- Congresswoman Louise Slaughter (NY-28), Ranking Member of the House Rules Committee, today lead several of her colleagues in a letter to the FDA asking for greater oversight from of antibiotics used for farm animals.

In a letter sent today to the Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Slaughter along with Senator Kirsten Gillibrand and Representatives Henry Waxman, Rosa DeLauro, Janice Schakowsky and Gerry Connolly, asked the FDA for speedy progress on regulation and guidance under review, Guidance #209, The Judicious Use of Medically Important Antimicrobial Drugs in Food-Producing Animals, and the Veterinary Feed Directive.

The lawmakers wrote, "We recommend speedy progress forward on the regulations and guidance under review, including Guidance #209, The Judicious Use of Medically Important Antimicrobial Drugs in Food-Producing Animals, and the Veterinary Feed Directive."

They concluded, "It is time to take action to preserve the effectiveness of antibiotics. Every year, nearly two million Americans acquire bacterial infections during their hospital stay, and approximately 100,000 die from them," the lawmakers wrote. "Seventy percent of these infections are resistant to the drugs commonly used to treat them. Antibiotics are one of the greatest treasures of modern medicine, and we look forward to working with you to preserve their effectiveness."

The full text of the letter is available below.

The USDA recently called for one of the largest recalls of turkey, due to antibiotic resistant turkey products that have killed one and infected at least 78 people nationwide. The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced a recall of 36 million pounds of ground turkey products from Cargill Meat Solutions Corporation, a Springdale, Ark. establishment, due to contamination with a multi-drug resistant strain of Salmonella Heidelberg.

According to the CDC, 26 states, including New York, have reported a total of 78 persons infected with the outbreak strain of Salmonella Heidelberg between March 1 and August 3, 2011.

Slaughter is a long-time leader in food safety and the only microbiologist in Congress. She is the author of the The Preservation of Antibiotics for Medical Treatment Act (PAMTA), legislation that would ensure that we preserve the effectiveness of antibiotics for the treatment of human disease.

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