4 September 2018: Animal producer networks in the Asia-Pacific Region are collaborating with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) and the World Organization on Animal Health (OIE) to develop a series of guidelines to mitigate the risks of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in the region. The most recent consultations focused on preventing AMR in aquaculture and enhancing AMR surveillance in diseased livestock and poultry.

Antimicrobial drugs are essential to treat diseases in humans and animals; however their frequent use can lead to the emergence of bacteria, fungi, viruses and parasites that are resistant, thus representing an important threat to human and animal health. In animal production, antimicrobial drugs are also used to prevent diseases or as growth promoter. These uses are associated with an increased risk of AMR emergence. FAO, OIE and the World Health Organization (WHO) are therefore collaborating to reduce the use of antimicrobial drugs in agriculture to mitigate the risk of AMR emergence.

Because of the rapid growth of animal production in Asia-Pacific countries, the region has become a focal area for efforts to develop and harmonize measures to prevent AMR. FAO and OIE, with the support of USAID, are organizing consultations and expert meetings to develop a series of guidelines for harmonized AMR surveillance systems. The most recent events focused on AMR surveillance in aquaculture and in livestock and poultry.

At a regional expert meeting in Bangkok, Thailand, participants developed a guideline for surveillance of bacterial pathogens in diseased livestock and poultry. The guideline lays out principles for quality data generation, development of treatments and improvements of responsible use of antimicrobial drugs along the region’s food chains, grounded in the realities of animal production in Asia.

Aquaculture is the fastest growing sector in food production with 90% of global production located in the Asia-Pacific region. Increasing trade in aquaculture products and live fish have led to a surge in the propagation of aquatic diseases. In regional consultations, FAO, OIE and the Network of Aquaculture Centers in the Asia Pacific (NACA) discussed the risks related to AMR in aquaculture and reviewed available evidence to inform the development of an AMR surveillance guideline.

These documents will complement previously adopted guidelines on food-borne bacteria from healthy animals (Guideline No. 1); bacterial pathogens from aquaculture (Guideline No. 3); and bacteria from animal settings/environment (Guideline No. 4). A guideline on antimicrobial usage data collection (Guideline No. 5) will be developed in the near future. [FAO Press Release. 29 August 2018. Livestock and Poultry] [FAO Press Release. 4 September 2018. Aquaculture] [FAO’s work on AMR] [FAO Action Plan on AMR 2016-2020]