UK on track to cut antibiotic use in animals as total sales drop 9%.

UK on track to cut antibiotic use in animals as total sales drop 9%.Sales of antibiotics for use in animals in the UK are at a four-year low, putting the UK on track to meet ambitious targets to tackle antibiotic resistance, according to a Defra report released. Antibiotic resistance is a growing threat to human health - experts believe if we do not take action it could be responsible for ten million deaths per year and cost the global economy $100 trillion by 2050. In September, the Government announced plans to tackle it, including a commitment to significantly reduce antibiotic use in animals. Today’s report shows overall sales by weight dropped by 9% from 2014 to 2015, while sales for use in food-producing animals dropped 10% from 62 milligrams per kilogram (mg/kg) to 56mg/kg. This continues a ten-year downward trend and puts the UK on track to reach its 50mg/kg target by 2018. As well as the overall reduction, the report shows a drop in sales of the highest priority antibiotics that are critically important for humans. Sales of these made up just over 1% of all antibiotics sold for use in animals in 2015.continue