In May of 2008, the Pew Charitable Trusts released a report entitled “Putting Meat on the Table: Industrial Farm Animal Production in America.”  When first released, the report was touted as a science-based report on industrial farm animal production (more commonly referred to as Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations or CAFO’s).  Upon its release, Dairy Business Association (DBA) did a detailed review of the 124-page document and concluded the report’s findings were questionable, opinionated, and failed to be an impartial review of animal agriculture.

Last week, the highly regarded American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) released a detailed statement which stated in part that the Pew Report contained “significant flaws and major dalliances from both science and reality."  Responding to Pew’s recommendation to “restrict the use of antimicrobials in food animal production to reduce the risk of antimicrobial resistance to medically important antibiotics,” AVMA responded by stating, “A scientific human/animal nexus connecting antimicrobial treatments in animals with food borne or environmentally contracted human disease has not been proven.”  The AVMA went on to state, “We believe the report assumes that agricultural use equates to a problem and based much of the discussion on what theoretically might happen with very little factual information about how human health is currently being affected.”

“The Dairy Business Association appreciates the AVMA’s willingness to release a statement on this matter,” said Laurie Fischer, DBA Executive Director.  Fischer further expressed, “Too often, America’s farmers are the target of spurious allegations claiming to be science-based, which all too often lack credibility.  Like the Pew Report, these attacks are often rushed into print or reported as news without proper review resulting in needless anxiety about the safety of American grown food.“

American farmers are the foundation of our nation’s $2.1 billion dollar food aid programs.  With the U.S. providing almost half the world’s total food aid (relieving hunger for more than 800 million people), America cannot afford to restrict food production -- especially based on a report which contains the author’s preconceived notions rather than unbiased science.

AVMA’s statement can be found at:  http://www.avma.org/advocacy/PEWresponse/