Friend,

Overuse of antibiotics in livestock is aiding the rise and spread of antibiotic resistant bacteria and putting our health at risk.1 A recent estimate suggests that up to 160,000 people die each year from antibiotic resistant infections in the U.S., making it the third leading cause of death.2

If Burger King, the second largest burger chain in the world, cut antibiotic overuse in its beef supply, it could have huge implications for the protection of public health.3

Burger King is in a powerful position to help shift the beef industry away from antibiotic overuse. With our life-saving medicines at risk, we need Burger King to take action.

Tell Burger King's CEO Daniel Schwartz: Your policies on antibiotic use matter. Help move the beef industry in the right direction and eliminate routine antibiotic use in your beef supply.

Our sister group U.S. PIRG Education Fund and their partners graded the country's top 25 burger chains in their annual Chain Reaction report and found that the vast majority, including Burger King, received an "F" grade for lacking established policies to restrict antibiotic use in their beef supply chains.4

These findings highlight the lack of progress in the beef industry, the largest buyer of medically important antibiotics among food animal sectors, in addressing antibiotic overuse.5 As the country's second biggest burger chain, Burger King has an outsized influence to shift the beef industry away from antibiotic overuse.

With your help, we can get Burger King to act. Tell CEO Daniel Schwartz to restrict antibiotic use to raise the beef it serves.

We know that your support can help get Burger King to take action and shift the beef industry away from antibiotic overuse.

After U.S. PIRG Education Fund released the Chain Reaction report and ran a consumer campaign, McDonald's announced in December that it would monitor and reduce antibiotic use in its global beef supply chain.6 And thanks to actions from consumers like you, we've already seen great progress in the chicken industry, with the top four U.S. chicken producers having made commitments to either reduce or eliminate medically important antibiotics from their production practices.7

Now we need you to show Burger King that you want to see this same progress for beef.

There's no time to wait. With our life-saving medicines at risk, it's time stop overusing these drugs to produce cheap meat.

We need your help to move burger chains and beef producers away from antibiotic overuse. Tell Burger King to restrict antibiotic use in its beef supply chain.

Sincerely,

Faye Park
President

1. "Stop using antibiotics in healthy animals to prevent the spread of antibiotic resistance," World Health Organization, November 7, 2017.
2. Jason P. Burnham, et al., "Re-estimating annual deaths due to multidrug-resistant organism infections," Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology, January 2019.
3. "2018 Top 500: Burger," Restaurant Business, June 22, 2018.
4. "Chain Reaction IV: Burger Edition," U.S. PIRG Education Fund, October 2018.
5. "2017 Summary Report on Antimicrobials Sold or Distributed for Use in Food-Producing Animals," U.S. Food and Drug Administration, December 2018.
6. Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz, "McDonald's pledges to reduce antibiotics in its beef supply by the end of 2020," Chicago Tribune, December 11, 2018.
7. Chris Dall, "Sanderson Farms to phase out medically important antibiotics," CIDRAP News, November 20, 2018.