On-Farm Antimicrobial Usage in Broiler Chicken Production
Broiler companies participated voluntarily and represented a large percentage of the overall U.S. broiler chicken production
- The antimicrobial use datasets represent 72% to 93% of broiler chicken produced annually, based on the companies included in the published WATT Poultry USA list
- The antimicrobial use data that were submitted for 2017 include information on approximately 7,900,000,000 chicks placed, 7,500,000,000 chickens slaughtered, and 48,000,000,000 pounds liveweight produced
Key Findings
Several key diseases were targeted by antimicrobial administration
- Necrotic enteritis, a clostridial disease of chickens, remains one of the most important diseases of chickens that requires antimicrobial therapy
- Colibacillosis, a broad category of E. coli diseases that affect chickens, results in much of the antimicrobial use in feed and water
- Gangrenous dermatitis, another clostridial disease, necessitates a considerable fraction of the overall antimicrobial use in chicken production
Antimicrobial use by all routes decreased substantially between 2013 and 2017
Hatchery Antimicrobials
- The approximate percentage of broiler chicks placed that received hatchery antimicrobials decreased from 93% in 2013 to 17% in 2017
- Hatchery gentamicin use in broiler chicks decreased approximately 74% between 2013 and 2017
Figure 1. Gentamicin Use in Broiler Hatcheries 2013-2017
Figure 2. Penicillin Use in Broiler Hatcheries 2013-2017
Figure 34. Centiofur Use in Turkey Hatcheries 2013-2017
In-Feed Antimicrobials
- In-feed virginiamycin use decreased approximately 60% between 2013 and 2017
- In-feed tetracycline use decreased approximately 95% between 2013 and 2017
Figure 14. Avilamycin Use in Broiler Feed 2013-2017
Figure 15. BacitracinUse in Broiler Feed 2013-2017
Figure 13. Bambermycins Use in Broiler Feed 2013-2017
Figure 10. Ormetoprim Use in Broiler Feed 2013-2017
Figure 8. Lincomycin Use in Broiler Feed 2013-2017
Figure 10. Sulfonamide Use in Broiler Feed 2013-2017
Figure 12. Tetracycline Use in Broiler Feed 2013-2017
Figure 9. Tylosin Use in Broiler Feed 2013-2017
Figure 11. Virginiamycin Use in Broiler Feed 2013-2017
Water-Soluble Antimicrobials
- Water-soluble penicillin use decreased approximately 21% between 2013 and 2017
- Water-soluble tetracycline use decreased approximately 47% between 2013 and 2017
- Water-soluble lincomycin use decreased approximately 28% between 2013 and 2017
- Water-soluble sulfonamide use decreased approximately 72% between 2013 and 2017
- Water-soluble tylosin use decreased approximately 46% between 2013 and 2017
Figure 24. Bacitracin Use in Broiler Water 2013-2017
Figure 19. Erythromycin Use in Broiler Water 2013-2017
Figure 18. Lincomycin Use in Broiler Water 2013-2017
Figure 16. Neomycin Use in Broiler Water 2013-2017
Figure 21. Penicillin Use in Broiler Water 2013-2017
Figure 17. Spectinomycin Use in Broiler Water 2013-2017
Figure 20. Tylosin Use in Broiler Water 2013-2017
Figure 23. Tetracycline Use in Broiler Water 2013-2017
Figure 22. Sulfonamide Use in Broiler Water 2013-2017
There was a shift to greater use of antimicrobial drugs that are not medically-important
- In-feed bacitracin remained a commonly-used antimicrobial drug for the prevention of necrotic enteritis
- In-feed avilamycin use increased in 2017, as it is a not medically important antimicrobial drug for the prevention of necrotic enteritis
Figure 14. Avilamycin Use in Broiler Feed 2013-2017
Figure 15. BacitracinUse in Broiler Feed 2013-2017
There were substantial reductions in the use of most medically important antimicrobials in broiler production, regardless of route of administration
- While a reduction in antimicrobial use may be an important indicator of improved stewardship, reducing the need for antimicrobials through improved disease prevention should be considered a more holistic indicator of overall flock health and optimal antimicrobial use
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