Farmers like John Vrieze are looking to the Food and Drug Administration to approve cefquinome, a powerful antibotic that could combat "shipping fever," a pneumonia-like illness commonly found in cows.
"If she gets sick and needs an antibiotic, we ought to be able to give her the latest, best, technologically advanced antibiotic we can," said Vrieze, who runs the 2,600-head Emerald Dairy farm.

But a panel of medical experts recently recommended the Food and Drug Administration not approve the drug, saying it could encourage the evolution of antibiotic resistant bacteria.

"You're climbing up a ladder until you get to where there's only a few drugs left" to kill the toughest germs, said Steve Roach, public health director of the Chicago-based nonprofit Food Animal Concerns Trust.

The case has grabbed the attention of consumers interested in how food is grown, pesticide use and animal welfare.

The FDA declined to comment on the controversy, saying it continues to collect information on cefquinome.

Source: High Plains Journal