Matt Oerly, DVM, of the California Veterinary Clinic, spoke to the Adult / Young Farmers group at the California High School Ag department facilities.
The topic was the new Veterinary Feed Directive (VFD) which will go into effect next year.
The idea of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), is to change the way feed and water-based antibiotics are used. The object is to protect the effectiveness of antibiotics which are used in food producing animals, as well as humans.
The concern is that if the antimicrobials are overused in animals, they will become less effective for people. While this is an upside to the matter, there is at least one downside - a high food cost for the consumer.
Several of the antibiotics currently available over the counter at farm service businesses will only be available by licensed veterinary prescription in the near future. Under the new system, the veterinarian must have a working knowledge of the farm and animals raised on it before a prescription can be issued for a VFD medication. That VFD order must be maintained by the licensed veterinarian and the farm client.
The idea is to have these classes of medication used only under professional supervision. This is additionally referred to as the Veterinary-Client-Patient Relationship (VCPR). In the absence of specific state regulations on the use of the medication, the federal regulations are to be followed.
In addition, there will be a VFD expiration date, which defines the period of time the antibiotic can be administered.
There are a number of changes - some of which are complicated. His best advice is for producers of food animals to seek information from a veterinarian or veterinary source, before making any decisions on changes for compliance.