One of the greatest health threats to humanity is spreading. As antimicrobial resistance (AMR) continues to accelerate, we are in danger of running out of life-saving antibiotics in the future. Improving farm animal welfare can play a crucial role in averting this global health crisis.

When Sir Alexander Fleming discovered that the fungus of the type “Penicillium” is killing bacteria in 1928, he revolutionised modern medicine with antibiotics. Now, almost a century later, we could lose this game-changing cure and as a result, might be thrown back into pre-antibiotic times. Due to the widespread use of antimicrobials, more and more bacteria, fungi and viruses have become resistant and no longer respond to existing medicines, making pathogens difficult, if not impossible, to treat. The consequences are fatal: every year 1.27 million people die due to AMR and this death toll is predicted to rise to 39 million over the next 25 years.

With fewer medicines working, we might see a future where doctors have hardly any therapeutics left to treat post-surgery infections for procedures as common as a c-section, just to name one example. Imagine a world without effective antibiotics, where every infection is a gamble: the body either manages to fight it off on its own or it does not. How can this bleak scenario be averted? It is undisputed that we need to reduce the use of antibiotics to preserve their efficacy. The main question is how?

AMR as a symptom of our sick farming system

We must get to the main sources of the problem. Today, 73% of antibiotics are used for farm animals, not humans. They are used to promote growth or to treat or prevent diseases, which often could be avoided through good animal husbandry, good keeping conditions, and overall good animal welfare. Factory farming has become a hotbed for AMR. To keep this sick system running, tons of antibiotics are routinely pumped into animals kept in cruel, unhygienic and crammed conditions. Most laying hens, for example, never see daylight and are caged in a space the size of an A4 paper. It comes as no surprise that under conditions like these, the immune systems of farm animals are suppressed and the incidence of infectious diseases increases, requiring antimicrobial treatment.

In factory farming, life-saving antibiotics have become a patch-up solution to keep animals alive in unsuitable conditions and to keep the production system economically viable. In commercial pig farms, for instance, when piglets are separated from their mothers, they often develop a condition called post-weaning diarrhea (PWD) for which antibiotic treatment is the norm, to avoid high mortality and financial losses. Several factors, such as separation from the mother at a too-young age, lack of outdoor access or long periods of hunger, have been identified to contribute to the high prevalence of PWD.

Clearly, prevention is better than cure. A Danish study showed that a higher weaning age of pigs, smaller groups with more space   and outdoor births decreased the use of antibiotics by more than 90% to treat prevalent intestinal disorders. Another example is broiler chickens. When looking at the high-intensive breeds of today, their growth increased by over 400% compared to the 1950s. They are paying a high price, suffering from deformities, having difficulties walking and being more prone to disease. According to a recent study, first-week treatment probability was decreased by around 80% in slow-growing chicken flocks, when compared to conventional flocks.

Political milestone in finding an antidote to AMR

AMR is symptomatic of our sick farming system. Therefore, the path to a sustainable use of antimicrobials clearly leads through improved animal welfare. On September 26th, a milestone was set in this direction, when governments adopted a political declaration on AMR at the General Assembly of the United Nations. The declaration’s chapter on “agriculture and animal health”, albeit modest relative to the urgency of the issue, smooths the way for positive transformation. It reaffirms that AMR must be tackled through a One Health approach, which recognises the interconnection between human, animal and environmental health. Signatories also committed to improving animal health and animal husbandry to reduce antimicrobial use in farming.

Now, it is in the hands of the UN organisations and the global governance structures on AMR to ensure that the implementation of the political declaration will advance animal welfare and reduce antimicrobial use in agriculture. Healthy farming systems are vital for tackling AMR. We are 25 years away from the predicted 39 million human lives lost to antimicrobial resistance. If there was ever a last chance to transform industrial farming - for the sake of our health, if nothing else - that chance is now.

Wendla Beyer is a Policy Officer at the global animal welfare organisation FOUR PAWS and focuses on farm animal welfare and antimicrobial resistance in her work. She represented FOUR PAWS at the UN General Assembly High-Level Meeting on Antimicrobial Resistance 2024 in New York, where she conveyed recommendations for the implementation of the political declaration on AMR.