Antibiotics used to treat cattle were easily bought without a prescription from pet shops as part of an investigation by The Sunday Times of Malta into the overuse of antibiotics on farms and their impact on public health.

Engemycin is used extensively as a broad-spectrum antibiotic for dairy and beef cattle, horses, pigs and sheep. It was easily acquired from two different outlets on the premise it was needed for a sick cow although it should not be distributed without a prescription.

Finadyne was also given over the counter based on the seller’s “experience” with his own cows. Finadyne – a non-steroidal inflammatory drug – also requires a prescription.

The use of antibiotics on farms leads to antibiotic-resistant bacteria, that are a threat to human and animal health. The World Health Organisation says antibiotic resistance – when bacteria change so antibiotics no longer work in people who need them to treat infections – is now a major threat to public health.

Campaigns on the judicious use of antibiotics are undermined by the lax practices in farms since residues remain present in milk and meat products distributed for human consumption.

Sources have confirmed a lack of enforcement of farm practices, particularly since the Koperattiva Produtturi tal-Ħalib (KPĦ) stopped the veterinary service it used to provide to local farmers.

The KPĦ used to employ the services of a full-time vet as Malta was trying to come in line with EU directives on the sector. There were no vets dedicated to such farms and foreign vets were brought to the island and employed by the KPĦ to offer this service.

Answering questions from this newspaper, KPĦ said it “changed the system” in 2006 as milk producers “preferred to have the freedom to choose a vet they trusted”. The cooperative said it also offered an opportunity for newcomers interested in providing this service.

This was challenged by a number of vets who said the service actually stopped in 2000 and the decision to allow milk producers to choose a vet they trust was “naïve” at best.

Farm services are difficult to provide, considering the time, expensive equipment involved and low demand. One vet made a valiant effort to run such a service but gave up after a short while. The result is a free-for-all situation as individual farmers struggle to maintain the health of their livestock since veterinary services for farms are practically non-existent in the country.

Veterinary services are mostly dedicated to pets, where owners provide a consistent demand. Few can leave a waiting room full of people to go and service a livestock farmer whose cow has fallen ill.

“No pet vet can afford to abandon a waiting room full of pet owners and rush off to a farm emergency and return over an hour later, having gone home to shower, change and get presentable again since farms are a mucky, smelly business,” one vet told The Sunday Times of Malta.

Milk producers preferred to have the freedom to choose a vet they trusted

The result is that most farmers sort it out as best they can. They speak to their trusted outlets, or anyone who will give them the medication they need.

The antibiotics acquired by this newspaper were bought from pet shops manned by people who clearly had no formal medical education. Clients walking in described different ailments and were given medicines requiring prescriptions over the counter based on the shop owners’ “experience”.

International scientific expert bodies have concluded over two decades that there is a connection between antibiotic use in animals and the loss of effectiveness of these drugs in human medicine.

Antibiotic resistance occurs when an antibiotic has lost its ability to stop bacterial growth within the body.

The overuse and misuse of certain drugs has put pressure on bacteria to evolve and become resistant, which in turn has created superbugs that are in many cases completely untreatable. Cattle farmers are exacerbating the problem.

No new antibiotics have been discovered since the 1980s.

KPĦ explains procedures

“KPĦ is not involved in the importation and sale of veterinary medicines, nor is it a regulatory body.

“Every milk producer delivering raw milk to a dairy, together with his production holding have to be registered with the veterinary regulatory department and other relevant government departments which carry out regular checks and controls to ensure compliance with EU standards.

“On delivery of the farm produce, the necessary checks and controls, including lab analysis, are carried out by the dairy processing company in the case of raw milk, and by the abattoir in the case of beef.

“The veterinary regulation department controls the results of these tests and also carries out analysis on milk, dairy products and meat according to their risk-based programmes”.

caroline.muscat@timesofmalta.com