Longitudinal Evaluation of Interventions on Antimicrobial Use and Antimicrobial Resistance on Broiler Farms in West Java, Indonesia

This longitudinal study (2019–2023) assessed how targeted interventions affected antimicrobial use (AMU) and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in Escherichia coli on small- and medium-scale broiler farms in West Java, Indonesia. Data from 98 production cycles before and 55 cycles after interventions were analyzed. While overall antimicrobial use slightly declined (from 11 to 9 treatment days per cycle), the reduction was not statistically significant, except for a sharp 92.6% drop in colistin use—mainly due to a national ban. Resistance levels in E. coli isolates across 14 tested antibiotics did not decrease after interventions, and higher AMU tended to correlate with increased resistance. The study highlights both the progress and challenges in reducing antibiotic use and resistance in poultry production, emphasizing the need for stronger, sustained strategies to curb AMR in animal farming.