BfR | Annual Report 2013
30
Resistances to antibiotics are a central topic in the debate surrounding food safety, as resistance rates in
bacteria from livestock animals have risen sharply in recent decades. The frequent use of antibiotics in
animal production is also being blamed in the public arena for the occurrence of multiple-resistance germs
in hospitals and for problems in the treatment of infections. The exact interrelation, however, remain un-
clear. With its research and evaluation, the BfR is helping both to improve the understanding of the factors
that lead to the development and spread of antimicrobial resistance and to evaluate the resulting risks.
For example, the institute presented data for the first time in 2013 on how often and in what quantities anti-
biotics were used in livestock animals.
It was recently proved using data on the resistance situation from 2012
that the incidence of resistant bacteria in the various species of animals
varies greatly. Results from the annual resistance monitoring of
E. coli
from 2009 to 2012 show that resistance rates in isolates from fattening
animals such as broilers, fattening turkeys, fattening pigs and fatten-
ing calves during these years were significantly higher than in isolates
from laying hens and dairy cows. Isolates from fattening cattle show
a significantly lower resistance rate as compared to other fattening
animals. Resistance monitoring examines both zoonotic pathogens as
well as harmless intestinal bacteria (“commensals”) that do not cause
any disease.
Higher resistance rates to important antibiotics
Resistance monitoring in 2012 showed no significant change in the re-
sistance situation in most areas compared to the period from 2009 to
2011. Of concern, however, is the continuing rise in the resistance rates
of
E. coli
to third generation cephalosporins and the fluoroquinolone
ciprofloxacin. These are two types of antibiotics that are of particular
importance in the treatment of humans. In particular, infections with
multiple-resistance bacteria are becoming increasingly problematic in
the treatment of humans.
Resistance rates in bacteria from fattening
animals have risen sharply in recent dec-
ades. The exact relationships between the
use of antibiotics on the farm, the resistance
levels among the animals and the impact
on human health are still unclear, however.
Antibiotic-resistant bacteria
in the food chain
