Antibiotic and synthetic growth promoters in animal diets: Review of impact and analytical methods

Abstract

Food quality and safety have been a significant and pressing issue in recent years. In light of the FAO's definition of food security – the physical, social and economic access to sufficient and nutritious food – food safety plays a fundamental role. Animal feed and feeding is pivotal to the livestock industry, but the use of veterinary antibiotics (VAs) and synthetic growth promoters (SGP) diminishes the sustainability of the diets and can cause an accumulation of residues in animals (meat, milk and eggs) and the environment (water and soil pollution). Wastewater systems are another major pathway through which antibiotics and hormones can enter the environment, with negative consequences. In order to protect the planet through more sustainable feeding, the reduction of antibiotics and synthetic growth promoters is a key aim, in particular with the goal of reducing antibiotic resistance and allergies. Analytical methods play a crucial role in food analysis, to determine the presence of antibiotics and other additives. Recent methods are based on liquid chromatography with ultraviolet, fluorescence, or mass spectrophotometry detection, which is recognized as an essential technique in food analysis, able to identify more than 300 compounds in feed samples. In general, a monitoring program put in place to educate the population on the hazards of residues in animal products is necessary, in conjunction with a continuous decrease in the use of antibiotics and synthetic growth promoters in animal diets.