Chick-Fil-A Revises Antibiotic Policy Amid Industry Shifts
Chick-Fil-A recently revised its longstanding commitment to exclusively serve “no antibiotics ever” (NAE) chicken, a policy aimed at countering the surge in human antibiotic resistance linked to widespread antibiotic use in animal farming.
The restaurant chain now intends to adopt a practice termed “no antibiotics important to human medicine” (NAIHM). This new approach involves refraining from using antibiotics critical for treating human diseases and restricting antibiotic use in animals to situations where the animals are genuinely sick.
For years, farmers have utilized antibiotics to accelerate growth in livestock, including chickens, pigs, cows, and sheep, thereby enhancing farm profitability. However, as concerns have grown over the last decade about such practices contributing to antibiotic resistance and diminishing the effectiveness of these drugs for treating human illnesses, countries, including the USA, have started to implement regulations to curb this trend.
Announcing a shift to this revised policy by spring 2024, Chick-Fil-A cites challenges in securing a consistent supply of chicken raised without any antibiotics as a significant factor for this change. Similarly, Tyson Foods, a major player in the poultry industry, announced last year its decision to reintroduce certain antibiotics into its chicken production and to remove the “No Antibiotics Ever” claim from its packaging. Since 2015, Tyson had been reducing the use of antibiotics in its poultry operations.
Tyson Foods, in a May 2023 video on its YouTube channel, highlighted this policy adjustment as informed by scientific research and practical insights within the industry. Karen Christensen, Tyson’s senior director of animal welfare, explained the company’s plan to use ionophores, a type of antibiotic not relevant to human health, to enhance the health and welfare of the poultry under their care. Ionophores have been traditionally employed in the livestock industry to promote growth.
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