Animal Use and Resistance

Antimicrobials are widely used in livestock production to maintain health and promote growth, contributing to the spread of drug-resistant pathogens in both livestock and humans.


OneHealthTrust (formerly CDDEP) developed the first global map of antibiotic consumption in livestock (Van Boeckel et al., PNAS) and conservatively estimated that 63,151 tons were consumed in 2010. These estimates have now been updated, and we now estimate that in 2013 there were 131,109 tons of antimicrobials consumed by food animals globally (Van Boeckel et al., Science). According to these revised estimates, China, the United States, Brazil, and India remain the largest consumers, collectively consuming nearly three-quarters of the global total. Based on current trajectories, OneHealthTrust (formerly CDDEP) estimated that total consumption by livestock would increase by 52% by 2030. The main drivers will be growth in consumer demand for meat and other livestock products in middle-income countries and a consequent shift toward large-scale farming operations where antimicrobials are routinely used. Click below to see country-level estimates and projections through 2030.

  • Est. Consumption in 2013
  • Projected Change in Consumption in 2030

In collaboration with Health Geography and Policy Group at ETH Zürich, CDDEP helped develop Resistance bank, an online repository for point prevalence surveys on antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in animals, with a focus on low and middle-income countries. It is aimed at providing the scientific community with a focal point to share information on AMR, and to help inform evidence-based policies by making global maps of AMR available to the public. Below are estimates of Antimicrobial resistance exposure by country. For details on the methodology, see Van Boeckel & Pires, Global Trends in Antimicrobial Resistance in Animals in Low- and Middle-Income Countries, Science 365, (2019). For details on hotspots within countries or to contribute data on AMR resistance in Animals see Resistance bank.

  • Resistance (chicken)
  • Resistance (pig)
  • Resistance (cattle)

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