Friends of the Earth and the National Resources Defense Council (NRDC) released an alarming report about the use of antibiotics in the poultry and meat supply chains of America's largest fast food and "fast casual" restaurants. It was also revealed most of these restaurants do not even have a policy or plan to cut the use of antibiotic.
"Most top U.S. chain restaurants have so far failed to effectively respond to this growing public health threat by publicly adopting policies restricting routine antibiotic use by their meat suppliers," the authors said in the report.
Only two received A's - Panera and Chipotle - out of the 25 restaurant chains graded in the "chain reaction" report. Starbucks, KFC, Pizza Hut, Wendy's, Burger King, Arby's, Applebee's, Denny's, Domino's and Jack in the Box are among those which received an "F" grade.
Farm animals are usually fed with antibiotics to prevent them from getting sick -- usually due to living unhygienic environments. However, it should be noted that this comes with repercussions.
"Overusing antibiotics in meat production helps to create drug-resistant superbugs," David Wallinga, MD, Senior Health Officer said with the NRDC in a news release. "Our nation's largest chain restaurants can be part of the problem, or part of the solution."
The CDC reported an estimated two million Americans contract antibiotic-resistant infections in 2013. More or less 23,000 of which are dying year after year -- which stresses the need for antibiotic regulation policies in the U.S.
Only Panera and Chipotle serve majority of their meat from animals without the routine use of antibiotics, Living Healthy shared. Chick-fil-A (B grade) and McDonald's (C grade) have already recognized policies to limit steady use of antibiotics in their chicken with a timeline in place, while Dunkin' Donuts (C grade) has a course of action covering all meats but has no reported timeline for execution.
Meanwhile, Executive director of the Center for Food Integrity Terry Fleck said that responsible use of antibiotics makes food safer and more affordable.
"Antibiotic resistance is a serious public health concern that should be addressed both in human and animal medicine," Terry told CNN in an emailed statement. "But just as with you or me, when animals get sick with a bacterial infection, treating them with antibiotics is the ethical thing to do. Farmers work closely with veterinarians to responsibly administer antibiotics in the care for their animals, benefiting each of us by making food safer and more affordable."
