Chick-Fil-A Reverses ‘No Antibiotics Ever’ Commitment to Allow Antibiotics in Chicken It Serves

Chick-fil-A Inc., an American restaurant chain specializing in chicken sandwiches, announced it will no longer serve chicken that is antibiotic-free. This decision reversed the brand's long-time pledge of "No Antibiotics Ever."

Why Chick-fil-A Changed Its Stance

According to Associated Press News, Chick-fil-A's move was prompted by the predicted supply shortage. This is also a sudden change of heart from its vow not to use chicken fed with antibiotics.

For years, Chick-fil-A has committed to serving only antibiotic-free chickens. The chain explained that this pledge is intended to help prevent human antibiotic resistance related to the widespread use of the drugs in most livestock production.

A Shift to Standard NAIHM

The restaurant announced it would now embrace a standard called the "no antibiotics important to human medicine" (NAIHM), which means it would allow some antibiotics. The NAIHM involves steering clear of certain medications that are commonly used for the treatment of humans and restricting the usage of animal antibiotics to particular instances of animal illness.

Chick-fil-A shared that it will apply the new NAIHM policy starting this spring. Through its spokesperson, the company said this move mirrors its concerns about its capability to obtain enough supplies of antibiotic-free chicken.

"To maintain supply of the high-quality chicken you expect from us, Chick-fil-A will shift from No Antibiotics Ever (NAE) to No Antibiotics Important To Human Medicine (NAIHM) starting in the Spring of 2024," Chick-fil-A said in a statement.

The fast-food chain added, "NAE means no antibiotics of any kind were used in raising the animal. NAIHM restricts the use of those antibiotics that are important to human medicine and commonly used to treat people, and allows the use of animal antibiotics only if the animal and those around it were to become sick."

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