Eight years after Tyson Foods announced plans to no longer use antibiotics in its chicken products, the multinational food corporation is reintroducing the drugs to its chicken supply chain and ditching its “no antibiotics ever” label on certain products. Tyson maintained that the antibiotics — called ionophores — “are not important to the treatment of humans,” according to a recent report from CNN. The company further justified its decision, saying that about half of United States poultry farmers use some form of antibiotics to maintain the health of their chickens. That’s because most chickens are raised in crowded and unsanitary conditions, which make them more vulnerable to certain diseases and health problems, per the United States Department of Agriculture.
The recent change was first disclosed in a Sunday report by The Wall Street Journal. “At Tyson Foods, we base our decisions on sound science and an evolving understanding of the best practices impacting our customers, consumers and the animals in our care,” a Tyson Foods spokesperson said in a statement.
Tyson will begin using a “no antibiotics important to human medicine” label by the end of 2023. “That standard, recognized by the USDA and the World Health Organization, allows for the use of antibiotics that are not crucial to the treatment of human diseases,” CNN wrote. The recent announcement marks a change in Tyson’s 2015 decision to stop using antibiotics in its production of wings, breasts and nuggets. At the time, Tyson said it wanted to help reduce human antibiotic consumption and antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections in humans.
