Antibiotic use on dairy farms falls as new industry targets already met

UK dairy farmers are cutting antimicrobial use faster than expected, meeting newly agreed industry targets just months after they were introduced.

The latest Kingshay Antimicrobial Focus Report shows antimicrobial use on dairy farms continuing to fall, with producers already achieving targets set by the Responsible Use of Medicines in Agriculture Alliance (RUMA) in November.

The report is based on data from 967 dairy herds across 136 veterinary practices using the Kingshay Antimicrobial Monitoring Service between 2024 and early 2025.

Average total antimicrobial use fell to 12.2 mg/kg PCU over the year, down from 12.7 mg/kg PCU in 2024 and 15.7 mg/kg PCU in 2020, reinforcing a longer-term downward trend.

Kingshay farm services specialist and report co-author Emma Puddy said the figures reflect sustained effort across the sector. “The industry’s efforts to reduce antimicrobial use are paying off,” she said.

She added: “It’s encouraging to see the latest RUMA targets are already being met.”

The targets, which apply from 2025 to 2029, include reductions in three-year rolling averages for lactating and dry cow tube use, alongside a requirement for a 10% year-on-year reduction in calf oral antibiotic use.

All of those thresholds were achieved within the dataset analysed.

Use of lactating cow tubes has fallen by 41% since 2019 to 0.352 DCDVet, while dry cow tube use remains below the three-year rolling average despite a small increase in the past year.

Calf oral antibiotic use also dropped sharply. “The calf oral antibiotics target was also met, with usage down 24% between 2024 and 2025 to 1.05 mg/kg PCU,” Ms Puddy said.

She said the most striking change has been in the use of injectable highest priority critically important antimicrobials, which have fallen to 0.005 mg/kg PCU — a 98.3% reduction over seven years.

However, the report shows progress has not been uniform across the country, with significant variation between regions and individual herds.

Average antimicrobial use was lowest in the south and south east of England at 10.4 mg/kg PCU, compared with 14.9 mg/kg PCU in the north of England.

At herd level, the contrast was even sharper. The lowest-using quarter of herds averaged 4.1 mg/kg PCU, while the highest-using quartile averaged 24.3 mg/kg PCU.

“That top quartile really pulls the overall average up – the median across all herds was only 9.8 mg/kg PCU,” Ms Puddy said.

She added that just over half of herds moved between quartiles year-on-year, highlighting how quickly antimicrobial use can change in response to health challenges.

“A disease outbreak can affect figures rapidly, which is why it is important to keep attention to detail high when it comes to adhering to health protocols, even when usage seems low,” she said.

Kingshay training consultant and veterinary surgeon Michael Head said monitoring disease levels remains central to further reductions, particularly on higher-using farms.

“Effective vaccination strategies form part of this because people can tend to reach for antibiotics,” he said.

He added that stronger immunity, genetic progress and improved nutrition are helping cattle resist disease, reducing reliance on antimicrobials, while benchmarking allows farmers to compare performance and identify where further gains can be made.

With new targets now in place through to 2029, Kingshay said maintaining progress will depend on continued focus at herd level, particularly in areas where use remains highest.