Antibiotic Resistance and Food Production: Historical and Philosophical Perspectives – with Flavio D’Abramo

The antibiotic-resistance emergency derives from the ability of microorganisms to rapidly adapt to their environment, including developing resistance to antibiotics. This phenomenon has been seen in the laboratory since 1908 and has been known to be an epidemiological problem since the 1950s, when it attracted the attention of WHO health diplomats. In the 1960s, British social movements and committed scientists became aware of antibiotic resistance as an environmental problem caused by food production. However, despite the fact that scientific institutions have had over a hundred years to become familiar with the issue, the use of antibiotics, especially in agriculture, has been increasing, and so too has the resistance of microorganisms to these molecules. Since the 1940s, antibiotics have even been used in larger and larger doses as growth-promoting factors in livestock. Industrial meat production has in turn been used as a tool to strengthen the national competitiveness of the major political powers. In this talk, I shed light on the scientific, environmental, cultural and geopolitical factors that in association with food production have amplified antibiotic resistance on a global scale. I will look at how the development and use of antibiotics in livestock production has often echoed national security discourses, without taking into consideration environmental aspects and the impact on local communities.