Challenges and Opportunities for Reducing Antibiotic Resistance in Agricultural Settings.

It is widely acknowledged that the use of antibiotics in agriculture can contribute to the spread of antibiotic resistance, and there is a general consensus among both the public and those in agriculture that antibiotic resistance in agricultural settings should be reduced.  Beyond this general framework, the details remain to be articulated - how to best focus the limited resources available for this endeavor to obtain the greatest benefit for human clinical medicine?  What is a relevant measure of antibiotic resistance, and what are realistic targets to set for reduction?  It can be expected that there will be different strategies and targets for antibiotic reduction in fruit tree production, fish farming, poultry production, and meat animal production.  In addition to reducing the total amount of antibiotics that are sold to agricultural producers, there are opportunities throughout the farm to fork continuum for reduction and remediation of antibiotics, antibiotic resistant bacteria, and antibiotic resistance genes as they travel through agroecosystems.  Data is needed to determine what the normal or natural level of antibiotic resistance is in different agricultural systems, so that the agricultural contributions can be accurately quantified.