Prepare for New Antibiotic Regulations

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Please pass this on to - Pork Producers and Exhibitors:

It's Time to Prepare for New Antibiotic Regulations

 

The new Food and Drug Administration regulations will affect all U.S. poultry and livestock producers, including anyone raising pigs, including youth exhibitors. Because of this, the National Pork Board has been urging all its stakeholders to get ready now, before the new antibiotic regulations take effect on Jan. 1, 2017.

"If they haven't already done so, pork producers and youth exhibitors should sit down with their veterinarians and determine what they need to do to comply with the new veterinary feed directive (VFD) and prescription requirement for water-based medications," says Jennifer Koeman, DVM, Pork Checkoff's director of producer and public health.

Although certification in the Pork Quality Assurance® Plus or Youth Pork Quality Assurance® Plus program should provide a good foundation, Koeman says some new requirements, such as keeping original copies of VFDs for two years (producer, veterinarian and feed mill) will be adjustments.

To help keep things simple, the National Pork Board has introduced the USCARE checklist. It offers six key steps for producers and exhibitors to take to prepare for the regulatory changes. For additional information about the antibiotic changes, visit www.pork.org/antibiotics.