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McDonald's pledges to address antibiotics in beef by 2021

December 11, 2018

McDonald's said today it will address antibiotics use in its beef supply chain by 2021, according to the National Resources Defense Council. Next year it will start pilot projects in 10 markets to get the chain's suppliers to cut down on the use of the drugs in beef produced for the company, the NRDC said in a news release.

A group of other limited-service chains, including Subway, Chipotle and Panera have either cut antibiotic use in their beef supplies or have committed to do so. At least 2 million Americans are already infected with antibiotic-resistant infections every year, and at least 23,000 die as a direct result, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Health advocates want the entire food industry to cut back and then end the use of antibiotics in meat production to turn that trend around.