A set of guidelines designed to help dairy farmers demonstrate best practice of antimicrobials has been launched by the Responsible Use of Medicines in Agriculture Alliance (RUMA).
The RUMA Guidelines for Cattle provide advice on all aspects of antimicrobial use from application and farmer and veterinary responsibilities, to strategies for reduced use.
The Guidelines for Cattle, which are targeted at dairy and also beef farmers, are the first of a wider series of working documents taking in other individual farm species to be produced by RUMA. Each is an update of a set of guidelines developed more than five years ago.
“The new guidelines for dairy cattle are effective and easy to read and will help all producers to use antimicrobials responsibly to safeguard herd health,” explained John Sumner policy advisor to the Royal Association of British Dairy Farmers (RABDF) who wrote the document for RUMA. “Adopting these guidelines will also help to ensure that both the milk and meat which farmers produce meet with consumer requirements,” he said.
For more information on RUMA, call Dr Tony Andrews, RUMA director, on 01438 717 900.
he Responsible Use of Medicines in Agriculture Alliance (RUMA) was established in November 1997 to promote the highest standards of food safety, animal health and animal welfare in British livestock farming.