CHICAGO (Reuters) – Hamburger chain Wendy’s Co (WEN.O) laid out plans on Friday to trim the use of antibiotics that are important to human medicine from its beef supply, the latest step by a food company to fight concerns about resistance to the drugs in people.
Starting in 2018, the company will buy about 15 percent of its beef from producers that have each pledged to reduce by 20 percent their use of Tylosin, the one medically important antibiotic they routinely feed to cattle, according to Wendy‘s.
Wendy‘s, which says it is the world’s third-largest quick-service hamburger chain, plans to increase the amount of beef it purchases from these producers and others that raise cattle in similar ways.
The company also said it finished removing antibiotics important to human medicine from its chicken supply, after pledging to do so last year.
“Moving away from routine antibiotic use in their beef production is certainly welcome, and we’d urge them to move quicker,” said Matt Wellington, antibiotics program director for advocacy group U.S. PIRG.
Removing antibiotics from cattle is more difficult, experts said, because the animals live longer than chickens and have more chances to fall ill.
In August, Consumers Union, the policy division of Consumer Reports, said McDonald’s told the group that the company hoped to have a timeline soon for reducing medically important antibiotics from its beef supply.
McDonald‘s, the world’s largest restaurant chain by revenue, says on its website it prefers beef raised with a “responsible use of antibiotics.”
Wendy’s plan is more concrete, Wellington said.
“It’s starting to set the example of what the industry should be following,” he said.
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