Title: FDA and Dairy Industry Spar Over Testing of Milk
Author: William Neuman
Publication: The New York Times
Date: January 25th, 2011
Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/26/business/26milk.html?partner=rss&emc=rss
Summary:
Each year, the FDA are finding more and more antibiotics in cows in dairy farms, more than the allowed amount. It is hard to get rid of the antibiotic milk, according to dairy farm owners, because they cannot just dump millions of gallons of milk just to make it better for the people. John J. Wilson, a senior vice president for Dairy Farmers of America, disagrees. He says, "the nation’s milk was safe and that there was little reason to think that the slaughterhouse findings would be replicated in tests of the milk supply." The F.D.A. said that it would confer with the industry before deciding how to proceed. 788 violated cows (cows with too much antibiotics in them) were found in 2008. In the end, the FDA decided to dump all the antibiotic milk, and start fresh.
Opinion:
I am kind of on the fence about this one. A lot of farms use antibiotics in their animals to keep them healthy and grow faster, but recently (as the article states) they are using a lot of antibiotics, too much, some may say. As we learned in class, this can cause problems. The biggest problem is that it can create resistant bacteria, which could get into the milk and into us. On the other hand though, I feel that it was wrong to throw out all that milk. That can cause environmental problems and it is not good for the cows. The FDA should know better than that.
Graphic
http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.answersingenesis.org/assets/images/articles/nab/h-pylori.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/nab/is-natural-selection-evolution&usg=__c_O6Ttw-eTgInvSJOPKpa2v7vX8=&h=407&w=550&sz=50&hl=en&start=0&sig2=du8vj2MbsAiT0eA1HgB9jA&zoom=1&tbnid=rGzqxgkvCzVFsM:&tbnh=129&tbnw=174&ei=9iiaTa2CCoOC0QG2w4X-Cw&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dantibiotic%2Bresistance%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DX%26biw%3D1045%26bih%3D484%26tbs%3Disch:1&um=1&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=436&vpy=184&dur=4872&hovh=193&hovw=261&tx=114&ty=182&oei=9iiaTa2CCoOC0QG2w4X-Cw&page=1&ndsp=10&ved=1t:429,r:7,s:0
I thought this was a good (and funny) picture of bacteria that can become resistant to antibiotics.
Questions:
1. What do you think of the FDA throwing out the milk?
2. What would you do about the antibiotic situation?
3. Would you even use antibiotics in the first place?
Opinion: This is bad. I think that if you really wanted to have your farm disease free is just to have your livestock live. Farms shouldn't have to use antibiotics. If the cows just got a little exercise outside a couple days a week, they wouldn't need as much antibiotics. Of course there are some cows that will end up getting sick, but that’s when you use the antibiotic, not regularly. Basically what I’m saying is that if you want clean and healthy food to supply, maybe you should aim for a clean and healthy farm instead of just adding more problems. I can relate to this because I have this one video game all about farming. In the game you can feed your animals this certain fodder that you buy instead of your farm's cut fodder and if you feed it the fodder you buy, it’s less likely to get sick, but the quality of milk goes down a grade or two. It’s kind of like if that bought fodder had antibiotics in it, your livestock never died, but your milk quality won't be as good.
ReplyDeleteExtension: http://crazymoos.wordpress.com/2010/07/09/antibiotics-in-my-milk/
This website reinforces that our milk does not have antibiotics in it.
Answer:
1) The milk didn't have to get thrown out; we could have used it for scientists to possibly develop a way to counter the antibiotics.
2) I would direct more farms to a better way to make their cows healthier without antibiotics.
3) Only if I knew the cow I was giving them to was sick or was in serious danger of getting sick. I would never use them to "stop infections" when in the end, they're only helping infections.
Opinion: I agree with Becca that it is wrong to throw out the milk, it might bring harm to the environment. Animals could take in the antibiotics in the milk and then that could cause a major change in the animal population. Farmers need to watch how much antibiotics they put in the cows system so the milk that they produce does not effect people when they drink it. I have this game on my ipod that lets you make your own farm and lets you choose what kind of products you can feed the animals. However, even though using antibiotics is not the safest thing, it is tempting to choose them to feed to the animals because it makes them produce faster which means more money, which lets me buy more things in the game. I've learned that antibiotics is tempting to use to make money and have a succussful farm, but it is not the best thing for animals and even humans.
ReplyDeleteAnswer to Questions:
1) I think that it is very bad that the FDA threw out the milk, that is bad for the environment and could have an effect on animals.
2) I would reduce the amount of antibiotics used on cows, but not completely get rid of them so the milk process does not dramatically slow down.
3) Not if I knew that the effect would be bad for the cows.
Opinion:
ReplyDeleteI think that there are good and bad things about these findings in the milk. It is bad that there have been more than the allowed amount of anti-biotics in the milk because it could potentially lead to danger in our bodies and cow bodies in the future. I think that the FDA made the right decision by dumping the milk because we do not yet know and understand the risks of GMO's. However, I personally am a supporter of GMO's for many reasons. I think that anti-biotics in cows is a good idea because it helps them grow faster, and it helps our economy. Therefore, if we keep watch on how much anti-biotic we put in these cows, I think it is a good idea. I'm glad that the FDA caught this because I drink A LOT LOT LOT of milk, and I would not want these anti-biotics in my system before we are aware of the affects of them.
Answer to Questions:
1)I think that the FDA should have found another use for the milk, but I am glad that they didn't bring it into our food supply.
2)I would keep watch on the amount of anti-biotics each farmer puts in its animals.
3)Yes I would use anti-biotics because it boosts our economy, creates more food, and helps animals grow at a faster rate.
New Questions:
1)How many farmers use anti-biotics in their animals?
2)Are there any dangers of this?
3)When did the use of GMO's begin?
I think that this is a very controversial issue. Today, many people still are not aware of this problem and I know that I do not even pay attention to what I eat at all. By putting antibiotics in cows’ diets to prevent diseases, dairy farmers are actually harming the people they sell their products too. The FDA would like to conduct a test to see how many illegal doses of antibiotics there are in cows at the moment before they are taken to the slaughterhouse. Although it would be helpful for the FDA to conduct these tests, they are very time consuming and involve wasting gallons and gallons of milk. If we do not find a solution soon, things will take a turn for the worse. The way that this whole situation affects me is because I drink milk at least twice a day. If my milk becomes polluted and I cannot drink t anymore, there goes multiple vitamins and proteins. All in all, I think this is a serious issue that needs to be addressed soon so that both cows and us are safe.
ReplyDeleteExpansion: http://www.globalhealingcenter.com/natural-health/dangers-of-cows-milk/ Good link that tells how the antibiotics affect the cows and how drinking milk with small doses of antibiotic can affect us.
Questions Answers:
(Answer to #3): I would not use antibiotics in the first place. They are causing problems in health issues in both animals and possibly humans. In addition to this, antibiotics sometimes work reverse and the antibiotic will not work anymore if animals are given so much.
3 Questions:
1. What is the new testing method the FDA has?
2. Why are these cows being fed antibiotics every day?
3. Should all the blame for this go on dairy farmers?