The use of antibiotics with therapeutical or prophylactical purposes is a common practice in livestock. These antimicrobials are often administered to food animals through medicated feedingstuffs.

Antibiotics in feedingstuffs

Medicated feedingstuffs may be defined as mixtures of veterinary medicinal products and feed intended to be fed to animals because of their therapeutic or preventive features. Antimicrobial products that are part of medicated feedingstuffs must have been authorised for the animal species which the feed is administrated to and must also be included in Council Regulation 2377/90.

Bacterial infections have been controlled for decades thanks to the efficiency of antibiotics. Now different sectors are warning about the necessity of an appropriate use of these drugs in order to preserve its unrivaled capacity

The first studies using sulfonamides to treat infectious diseases began in the early 20^th century. In just a few decades these drugs together with penicillin G help to decrease the rate of mortality caused by infections.