The National Institute for Animal Agriculture (NIAA) will host the 14th Annual Antibiotics Symposium in Denver, Colorado at the Colorado State University’s SPUR Campus from November 19-21, 2024. Led by NIAA’s Antibiotics Council co-chairs, Dr. Heather Fowler and Dr. Alexandra Medley, the planning team is preparing a Symposium program that continues to lead animal agriculture’s work in a One Health approach to antimicrobial stewardship and combatting antimicrobial resistance (AMR). The 2024 Symposium will focus on Combatting AMR Together: Shared Commitment, Shared Success.
Drs. Fowler and Medley recently accepted their roles as co-chairs and have wasted no time selecting a planning team and brainstorming topics One Health leaders will find most valuable. Symposium topics will include barriers to reduction and stewardship in production, surveillance of use and resistance across sectors – human, animal, environment, metrics beyond antimicrobial use measurement, regulatory updates, and more. Animal agriculture benefits from the expertise and guidance of those on the 14th Annual Antibiotics Symposium planning committee:
· Alexandra Medley, DVM, MPH, DACVPM – The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
· Heather Fowler, VMD, PhD, MPH, DACVPM – National Pork Board
· KatieRose McCullough, PhD – The Meat Institute
· Chelsey Shively, DVM, PhD, DACAW – USDA, APHIS
· Kris Johannson, PhD, MBA – NIAMRRE
· Michelle Kromm, DVM, MPH, MAM, Diplomate ACPV – Food Forward, LLC
· Courtney Youngbar – Association of State and Territorial Health Officials
· Claudine Kabera, MPH – Food and Drug Administration
· Dan Kullot, DVM – Dairy Farmers of America
· Ryan Loseke, DVM – Loseke Feedyard
· Rebecca Campagna, DVM, MPH, DACVPM – National Association of State Public Health Veterinarians
· Karyn Havas, DVM, PhD – Pipestone Veterinary Services
This year’s program follows and builds upon multiple One Health engagements. In July, the National Pork Board (NPB) partnered with the National Institute for Animal Agriculture (NIAA) to convene a group of public health, animal health and swine professionals in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, to build relationships and explore opportunities for One Health collaborations. The One Health farm to fork experience spanned all phases of on-farm swine production, a feed mill, truck wash, and processing plants in Minnesota, South Dakota and Iowa. The educational tour focused on biosecurity, animal wellbeing, and sustainability to create a dialogue between human health, animal health, and food safety professionals.
In August, NIAA convened animal agriculture leaders in Atlanta, Georgia to meet with human and animal health experts at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) prior to their antimicrobial resistance discussion with leaders at the 79th UN General Assembly. This latest convening built on previous meetings that began in 2018. A multi-day One Health discussion spanned animal agriculture priorities, foodborne illnesses, waterborne transmission, H5N1 updates and preparedness, fungal pathogens, worker safety, tours of CDC enteric pathogen laboratories, and more.
Through ongoing discussions and experiential learning tours with public health leaders, like these mentioned, animal agriculture leaders identify opportunities to concretely improve One Health outcomes. Additionally, farmers, ranchers, and veterinarians provide context about on-farm and ranch practices to increase public health officials’ understanding for enhanced investigations of foodborne, waterborne, and environmental disease outbreaks.
To register for the 14th Annual Antibiotics Symposium, please visit www.AnimalAgriculture.org. For assistance or media passes, please contact Morgan Young, Director of Communications and Outreach for the National Institute for Animal Agriculture at morgan.young@animalagriculture.org.
