Influence of the Milk and Dairy Beef Quality Assurance Program on dairy farm drug management practices

To test the hypothesis that dairy farms certified in the Milk and Dairy Beef Quality Assurance Program (QAP) were more likely to use prudent drug management practices than farms that were not certified.

Cross-sectional study.

141 Michigan dairy farms of which 74 were not certified in the QAP, 30 were involuntarily certified, and 37 were voluntarily certified.

Dairy producers completed a self-administered questionnaire that focused on herd health management, drug use, record keeping, personnel management, and descriptive characteristics of their farm during 1993. Separate multivariable logistic regression models were developed to determine the association of QAP certification with each of the management practices.

Results suggested that farms adopted specific management practices irrespective of certification. Many farms used visible identification and non-emergency veterinary services and discussed residue prevention with employees. Involuntary certification was associated with maintenance of good written treatment records and performance of on-farm drug residue testing. Voluntary certification was weakly associated with use of refrigerated drug storage.

QAP certification appeared to have been associated with the adoption of only a few prudent drug use practices, although QAP materials and framework were developed to assist veterinarians in the promotion of disease prevention, client communication, and residue prevention practices on farms. Veterinary care would benefit from the development and encouragement of better record keeping on farms.