Germany: Slight increase in the use of veterinary antibiotics

The use of veterinary antibiotics increased slightly in Germany in 2020. According to data from the Federal Office for Consumer Protection and Food Safety (BVL), a total of 701 tons of veterinary antibiotics were administered, 31 tons more than in the previous year (+4.6%). Compared to 2011 (the first year with recorded data) antibiotics were down 59%.

As in previous years, the largest quantities of antibiotics dispensed were penicillins (278 t) and tetracyclines (148 t). They were followed by sulfonamides (65 t), macrolides (61 t) and polypeptide antibiotics (60 t).

The amount of fluoroquinolones, particularly important in human treatment, increased slightly in 2020 (+4 t, +6.7% over the previous year). Despite this slight increase, it was well below the initial value in 2011 (-22%). In contrast, there was a decrease in polypeptide antibiotics compared to the previous year (-9.2%), reaching its lowest level since 2011. From 2011 to 2020, there was a reduction of 2.2 t (-63.4%) for 3rd and 4th generation cephalosporins and 67 t (-53%) for polypeptide antibiotics. For macrolides, there was an increase of 3.7 t (+6.4%) in 2020 compared to the previous year, but between 2011 and 2020 was a reduction of 112 t (-64.9%).