Antibiotics are ranked by Health Canada based on their importance to human medicine, ranging from Categories I to Category IV. Category I antibiotics are those considered to be of the highest importance to humans: they are essential for serious human infections as there are few or no alternatives available. They are considered to be antibiotics used as a “last resort” in human medicine. Category IV antibiotics, on the other hand, are not used in human medicine.

Because Category I antibiotics are those considered most important to human health, the chicken industry took steps to significantly reduce their use. As of May 15, 2014, their preventive use was no longer permitted in the Canadian chicken sector. Additionally, the chicken industry eliminated the preventive use of Category II antibiotics at the end of 2018. Work is on-going to further reduce antimicrobial use, with specific attention on reducing the preventive use of Category III antimicrobials.

Farmers can use antibiotics in chicken farming to protect the health and welfare of the birds. Antibiotics are given to treat the birds when they or birds in their flock are sick, referred to as therapeutic use, and to prevent them from getting sick in the first place, known as preventative use.

The policy we’ve put in place addresses the preventive use of Category I antibiotics such as Excenel® and Baytril® and does not impact the therapeutic use of Category I drugs for disease treatment.

Although the use of Category I antibiotics to treat disease is rare, therapeutic use will remain an option when necessary and prescribed by a veterinarian.

The elimination of the preventative use of Category I and II antimicrobials has been made a mandatory element of the Raised by a Canadian Farmer On-Farm Food Safety Program – which is mandatory and enforced in all 10 provinces with annual audits and has been granted full recognition from the Federal-Provincial and Territorial governments.

Monitoring is performed via industry antibiotic use surveillance as well as continued government surveys through the Canadian Integrated Program for Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance (CIPARS), of the Public Health Agency of Canada.

Antibiotics play an important role in providing a safe product for consumers, as well as in poultry health and welfare. Antibiotics help to maintain healthy birds, thereby ensuring a safe food supply for consumers and to prevent any potential food safety problems. Chicken Farmers of Canada supports the responsible use of antibiotics that have been approved by the Veterinary Drugs Directorate of Health Canada, in order to ensure food safety, animal health and animal welfare. The Canadian chicken industry is committed to controlling, monitoring and reducing antibiotic use in order to preserve effective treatment options.

We support only the most responsible use of antibiotics and we are being proactive to manage antibiotic use in order to provide continued confidence to consumers and government. These efforts have been successful in reducing antimicrobial use and resistance. We understand that consumers and others have concerns regarding antibiotic use and resistance, and we take our responsibility very seriously. Chicken Farmers of Canada has:

• Implemented a sector-wide strategy to control, monitor and reduce antimicrobial use where possible.
• Created a working group with representatives from throughout the chicken industry to examine ways to reduce antibiotic usage.
• Reviewed best management practices to define antibiotic use and antibiotic resistance trends.
• Worked with government to create an on-farm surveillance program for chicken, which will complement the current data from processors and retailers.
• Initiated an education campaign to farmers and industry stakeholders on the issues of antibiotic use and resistance.
• Invested in antibiotic alternative research in collaboration with industry stakeholders through the Canadian Poultry Research Council.

No. Health Canada removed growth promotion claims from antibiotics of importance to human medicine in 2018. It is also important to point out that “growth promotants” do not refer to hormones. The use of hormones in chicken production has been illegal in Canada since the 1960s. It is also important to point out that “growth promotants” do not refer to hormones. The use of hormones in chicken production has been illegal in Canada since the 1960s.

While a full ban on preventive antibiotics isn’t the answer at this point, the chicken industry has eliminated the preventive use of Category I and II antibiotics. Chicken Farmers of Canada is now focusing on a non-regulatory approach to further reducing antimicrobial use, with specific attention on reducing the preventive use of Category III antimicrobials. Category IV antibiotics (e.g. ionophores), not used in human medicine, will continue to be used preventatively. The chicken industry is continuing to study all facets of antibiotic use in animal agriculture to ensure that responsible, appropriate and safe use of antibiotics can continue while reduction methods are explored at all levels of the industry, and with stakeholders and government partners. There is no straightforward, easy solution to the antibiotic resistance and use discussion.

The chicken industry has developed a Responsible Antimicrobial Use (AMU) Strategy that involves reduction, surveillance, education and research and has eliminated the preventive use of Category I and II antibiotics. Surveillance has demonstrated the success of this strategy. Chicken Farmers of Canada is now focusing on a non-regulatory approach to further reducing antimicrobial use, with specific attention on reducing the preventive use of Category III antimicrobials.

Canada’s chicken farmers, and indeed the entire chicken industry, are working closely together to better understand the chicken immune system and to investigate antibiotic alternatives. We have proactively implemented a sector-wide strategy to control, monitor and reduce antimicrobial use while working alongside industry and government partners to safeguard poultry health and welfare. The continued availability of antimicrobials, and their subsequent responsible use, is important to safeguard poultry health and welfare.

Canadian chicken farmers implement a mandatory On-Farm Food Safety Program (OFFSP) to standardize food safety production practices, and receive an annual audit to verify compliance. A part of that program includes a reporting form that is sent with every flock to processing. Canadian Food Inspection Agency veterinarians verify these reports to determine that antibiotics were used as per their label or with a veterinary prescription and that the antibiotics are being used at the appropriate dosage for the appropriate application. Any product failing this investigation is not allowed on the market.

Farmers are also actively involved in funding research examining antimicrobial resistance and alternatives to antibiotic use.

Chicken Farmers of Canada is working with the Canadian Integrated Program for Antibiotic Resistance Surveillance (CIPARS) of the Public Health Agency of Canada to conduct on-farm surveillance to monitor antibiotic resistance and use. CIPARS has demonstrated reductions in antimicrobial use and resistance, and has pointed to CFC’s Responsible AMU Strategy as a major factor for this reduction.

Proper care and handling of food should always be followed to make sure that bacteria and foodborne illness are kept at bay. When chicken is cooked properly, any bacteria, resistant or otherwise, are killed. Everyone involved in the food chain, from the primary producer to the consumer, has a role to play in ensuring our food is safe to eat. The food industry and governments work together to deliver food that is safe to consumers. The important, and sometimes forgotten, role of the consumer is to maintain the safety of that food by using safe food handling practices from the point of purchase.

Chicken Farmers of Canada, and other government and industry partners, together founded the Canadian Partnership for Consumer Food Safety Education in 1997 to create a single organization, funded by all partners, to address the ongoing need to inform consumers about safe food handling practices. The goal is to reduce the incidence of foodborne illness in Canada from all food sources, be they meat or vegetable, in order to protect Canadian consumers. The Partnership uses four key messages to educate consumers and help create safer eating environments at home:

Clean: Wash hands and surfaces often

Separate: Don’t cross-contaminate

Cook: Cook to proper temperatures

Chill: Refrigerate promptly

For more on how you can safely prepare chicken at home, click here.

For more information on the Partnership, click here.

Yes. On top of all the controls in place ensuring that Canadian chicken is safe, consumers can be the last line of defense by using proper handling and cooking practices. The tried and true messages about safe handling and cooking – clean, separate, cook and chill – are well-founded and applicable to this situation. Proper care and handling of food should always be followed to make sure that bacteria and foodborne illness are kept at bay. When chicken is cooked properly, any bacteria, resistant or otherwise, are killed. Everyone involved in the food chain, from the primary producer to the consumer, has a role to play in ensuring our food is safe to eat. The food industry and governments work together to deliver food that is safe to consumers. The important, and sometimes forgotten, role of the consumer is to maintain the safety of that food by using safe food handling practices from the point of purchase.

Remember these four key messages to create safer eating environments at home:

Clean: Wash hands and surfaces often

Separate: Don’t cross-contaminate

Cook: Cook to proper temperatures

Chill: Refrigerate promptly

No – Consumers should be confident that chicken is free of any harmful antibiotic residues. That’s because a certain amount of time must pass from when an animal is last treated with antibiotics until it is processed. This is known as a withdrawal period, and it ensures that the drug has been metabolized by the body and no harmful residues remain in the meat and this is monitored by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency. You can rest assured that you are not eating antibiotics in your chicken.

Federal regulations (CFIA Meat Hygiene Manual of Procedures, Chapter 19, section 3.4.2) require chicken farmers to report antibiotics that have been used for each flock prior to the birds being processed. CFIA veterinarians verify these reports to determine that antibiotics were used as per their label or with a veterinary prescription and that the antibiotics are being used at the appropriate dosage for the appropriate application. Any product failing this investigation is not allowed on the market. Additionally, as part of the annual on-farm food safety audit, auditors review the antibiotic usage and ensure withdrawal times are adhered to.

Canadians are well served with the Raised by a Canadian Farmer On-Farm Food Safety Program (OFFSP). The OFFSP emphasizes animal health, cleanliness and safety throughout each step of the production cycle, and follows strict biosecurity measures to protect animal health and prevent flock infections from outside sources. These mandatory rules govern chicken farms from coast to coast and include top-notch requirements for biosecurity, disease prevention, feed and water management and testing, along with all the record keeping necessary to prove that farmers are adhering to the process.

The OFFSP has been received full recognition from the federal, provincial, and territorial (FPT) governments, and Chicken Farmers of Canada undergoes reviews by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and provincial governments every 20 months to ensure that the program maintains FPT standards.

In this program, antibiotic use is reported with every flock that is sent to processing and this is reviewed by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency. Additionally, as part of the annual audit, auditors audit the antibiotic usage and ensure withdrawal times are adhered to.

On farm surveillance of resistance and use is coordinated by CIPARS – the Canadian Integrated Program for Antibiotic Resistance Surveillance of the Public Health Agency of Canada – and Chicken Farmers of Canada has been an active participant in this program.