Dive Brief:
- The FDA conducted a test of milk samples from nearly 2,000 dairy farms to determine if these farmers used any of the 31 most common antibiotics to treat their cows, which are not supposed to produce milk if recently treated.
- Half of the dairy farmers were in one group, in which the FDA found around 1% of their milk samples to be tainted. About 0.4% of the other group's milk samples tested positive for drug residues.
- The FDA reported 12 drugs in its tests, most often Florfenicol, none of which can legally be used for dairy cows meant to produce milk.
Dive Insight:
Dr. William Flynn, deputy director for science policy in the FDA's Center for Veterinary Medicine, saw these results as positive. He told NPR's The Salt, "'These are encouraging findings.' The low number of violations indicates that 'things are working well.'" He also said that the FDA is devising strategies to prevent the use of antibiotics by milk-producing dairy farmers in the future.