CALF News Aug./Sept 2018

8 CALF News • August | September 2018 • www.calfnews.net I N S E A R C H O F O n June 21, there was one place to be if your focus was on the future of the cattle industry. The tiny commu- nity of Montezuma, Kan., is not exactly a common destination, but that day a host of VIPs graced the Hy-Plains Edu- cation & Research Center, along with cattlemen representing over 2.5 mil- lion head of livestock. The One Health Initiative seeks to provide “science-based solutions to reduce antibiotic use in food animal production.” The daylong seminar featured speak- ers from the Center for Disease Control (CDC), professors from Kansas State University (KSU), prominent veterinar- ians, Kansas Department of Health and Environment representatives as well as a representative from Taco Bell, Mark Garner of Gardiner Angus Ranch and Tom Jones of Hy-Plains. A mutual learning experience To establish a bench line, seminar speakers toured Circle Land and Cattle and Beefland Feed Yard the day before the event. After arriving at Hy-Plains, an array of beef industry leaders gave them an overview of the health, nutrition, record keeping and associations at work in the cattle community. For many of the city folks, the tour and exposure to the basics of the industry were new information.“This is reality. I love to get out and see what really works,” said Dawn Sievert of the CDC. The difference between Atlanta, Ga., and Montezuma was apparent for Sievert during the drive fromWichita. She loved the wide-open spaces. Also from the CDC, Dr. Megan Nich- ols, a native of New Mexico, was hoping she would have a chance to ride horse- back before going home.“In Atlanta, they mostly ride English,” she said. Standing-room only Producers from across the spectrum listened to experts working in the disease and animal health fields. By definition, One Health is the collabora- tive effort of multiple disciplines and sectors – working locally, nationally, regionally and globally – with the goal of achieving optimal health outcomes, recognizing the interconnection between people, animals, plants and our shared environment. Mike Apley, DVM, Kansas State Uni- versity faculty, set the stage by explaining how groups of drugs were developed and then used for human and animal health. “108 years ago, arsenic was used to kill the bacteria before they could kill you,” Apley said. Since the 1930s and the development of sulfa drugs and others drug groups, progress was made in fighting bacte- rial infection. by 1985, Apley said, the word was out that we had won the battle against infectious disease. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case. Scientists had underestimated the nature of bacteria. The way Dr. Apley describes it, we are basically fighting an ongoing war. Man comes up with a new group of antibiotics (the last one was in 1978) and bacteria find a way around it. Apley’s not sure there will be ever new groups of drugs developed. However, if there are, they will be used for human health, not animal health. “Is the sky falling? Not today,” Dr. Apley said. But he was realistic about the One Health Initiative By Betty Jo Gigot Publisher | Photos by Cogent Ideas, Inc. Bob Smith, DVM, moderated the One Health Initiative conference. The Hy-Plains Education and Research Center meeting room saw a full house for the event.