Use of tetracyclines in feeds: Causes and consequences

Abstract

Tetracycline antibiotics, including tetracycline (TC), chlortetracycline (CTC), oxytetracycline (OTC) and doxycycline (DOX), are commonly used in veterinary medicine because of their broad-spectrum activity, cost effectiveness and certain favourable pharmacokinetic properties. The use of antibiotics in feed for non-medicinal purposes has been prohibited in the European Union. In Poland and other countries of the European Union, there are official national programmes for controlling the use of TCs and all other antibacterials in feed. This paper presents the pharmacological properties of TCs as well as the main reasons for and consequences of their use in feed. It also presents a chromatographic method for detection of TCs in animal feeds. The method is used in routine testing of food for the presence of tetracycline antibiotics. In the years 2015-2017, tetracycline antibiotics were detected in 31 out of 126 feed samples analysed by this method.