Antibiotics Used by the Ton in Animal Feed Every Year

According to a report released yesterday, 25.6 million pounds of
antibiotics are mixed with farm animals’ food every year -- almost all
of it concentrated in just 23 states, mainly in the Mid-Atlantic and
the South.

Nearly 70 percent of all the antibiotics used in the US each year
are added to food consumed by pigs, chickens, cows and other farm
animals destined for supermarket shelves.

Antibiotics are added to animal feed to boost growth and prevent
infections, but the practice in turn creates bacteria immune from many
common medicines used to treat infections in humans.