This report found that in 2022, the sales of veterinary antibiotics decreased by 18.8% compared to 2021. This significant decline in sales of veterinary antibiotics is welcome, given the target in the European Green Deal and the Farm to Fork strategy for a 50% reduction in sales of antimicrobials for farmed animals and in aquaculture in the European Union by 2030 in comparison to the reference year 2018.
The decline in 2022, which has continued from the previous year, is evident in all antimicrobial classes except the aminoglycosides (which remained at the same level), but importantly in the highest priority critically important antibiotics.
This report presents the data collected by the HPRA for the year 2022, on the sales of veterinary antibiotics that are marketed in Ireland. This work is conducted in conjunction with the European Surveillance of Veterinary Antimicrobial Consumption (ESVAC) project, a European Commission initiative coordinated by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and with the assistance of the companies involved. The data are based on the voluntary declarations by marketing authorisation holders on the supply of their products. The HPRA has been collecting these data since 2009.
The sales data provided in this report should be interpreted with caution; annual sales figures have been observed to fluctuate and such variation is regarded as normal. It should be noted that changes in animal demographics from one year to the next will also influence the demand for antibiotics.