Invest in Prevention: An Animal Health Expert Interview with Dr. Laure Weber-Vintzel

As governments and animal health sectors confront rising antimicrobial resistance (AMR), experts are increasingly calling for stronger investment in prevention, surveillance, Veterinary Services and animal health systems.

Among them is Dr. Laure Weber-Vintzel, Senior Livestock Specialist at the World Bank, who applies decades of veterinary practice to combat AMR. Reflecting on the recently launched State of the World’s Animal Health report, her insights capture the barriers, prevention, and solutions to lower antimicrobial use in livestock while raising productivity.

Can you briefly describe your journey into antimicrobial resistance (AMR)?

Dr. Laure Weber-Vintzel: I started as a veterinary practitioner, where responsible antimicrobial use was part of my everyday work. I then joined the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH), which has long been strongly committed to tackling antimicrobial resistance. In my current World Bank role, I now operate at the nexus of sustainable livestock systems, animal health, and cross-sector collaboration, making AMR an important focus of my responsibilities.

From your experience, what are the main challenges farmers and veterinarians face with antimicrobial use? 

L. W.: First, access; access to quality veterinary medicinal products, including antimicrobials, and to basic veterinary services is a key challenge resulting in inappropriate use of over-the-counter products. In addition, as in most veterinary fields, poor investments in prevention are a key driver leading to disease outbreaks and a subsequent reliance to antimicrobials.

And of course, lack of awareness, food insecurity and poverty remain amongst the key AMR drivers. For example, in low-resource areas, even educated farmers cannot always afford discarding milk post-treatment, leading to milk with antibiotic residues being consumed.

There’s a belief that reducing antibiotic use harms productivity.
Is that true? 

L. W.: This isn’t that simple. It is poor animal health that harms productivity. So when antimicrobial use supports animal health, they will support productivity; but when antimicrobials are used irresponsibly, they do not support animal health and do harm productivity.  

Poor herd management and poor livestock health prompt diseases and antimicrobial dependence. Investments in hygiene, biosecurity, vaccination, nutrition, and feed yield healthier animals, higher productivity, and reduced antimicrobial needs, moving from reactive fixes to proactive strategies with multiple co-benefits. 

What are the biggest gaps in current AMR efforts? 

L. W.: The list is quite long and includes: AMR stewardship; prevention investments; stakeholders awareness; AMU data; strengthened Veterinary Services; stronger surveillance capacity.

Surveillance, for example, requires capacity from ground-level networks for advice to farmers, early detection and response, up to laboratory capacity to tailor treatments to pathogens.

More generally, AMR is still perceived as a medical / veterinary issue; while, it is a development threat with real macroeconomic consequences. This message has to be conveyed at the highest levels of governments. Preventing and reducing AMR protects livestock health, productivity and therefore livelihoods.

What about investments? Where should investments focus moving forward? 

L. W.: Any measures that improve animal health will reduce antimicrobial need and use and improve livestock productivity: whether that’s better biosecurity, hygiene, vaccination, or feed. I often use the analogy of a water leak: you can repaint over the damaged wall, but the water will keep seeping in because its source has not been addressed. What we need is a shift from fixing problems to preventing them: redirecting money, energy and resources upstream.

So, we must invest in systemic prevention, in surveillance, in veterinary medicine regulation and in behaviour change.

Indeed, communication and awareness-raising among farmers are essential. Disease prevention is far less costly than response, and this holds true for antimicrobial resistance too. Investing in something that may never materialise is a hard sell. But the evidence is there: farmers who invest in herd management, prevention and biosecurity, simply have healthier animals and need fewer antimicrobials.

What role should governments play in addressing AMR? 

L. W.: AMR is a systemic issue. Governments must take a holistic approach from investments in prevention to laboratory capacity building, access to quality medicines, veterinary oversight and intersectoral cooperation. Without such an approach, we will keep repairing leak damages, instead of fixing the source.

Governments also have a strong role to play in identifying development partners ready to support their efforts in addressing AMR. Among those is the World Bank Group, considering AMR not only as a veterinary or medical issue, but as a development threat requiring immediate action.

If you had one key message for global audiences on AMR, what would it be?

L. W.: Invest in prevention. Healthy animals, protected from pathogen exposure, need fewer antimicrobials, yield better productivity, and incur lower disease costs. Early investments cut antimicrobial use and resistance while boosting output. Upstream action, communication, and capacity building are a win-win for farmers, governments, and vets.